China's State-owned energy giant China Petroleum and Chemical Corp, also known as Sinopec, announced on Tuesday a major breakthrough in natural gas exploration.

The company announced that a well in the Sichuan Basin in Southwest China tested at a high daily output of 314,500 cubic meters of industrial gas flow, a discovery that will boost gas reserves and production in the Puguang area.

The well, which reached a vertical depth of over 5,300 meters, set a new record for the deepest vertical depth of a shale gas well in China. It will provide important experience for exploring for very deep shale gas across the entire Sichuan Basin, helping its large-scale development.

China is rich in coal resources but has less oil and gas. Finding and developing domestic shale gas resources is strategically important for China's energy security and future energy supply, it said.

zhengxin@chinadaily.com.cn