Annual output of Daqing Gulong shale oil of China National Petroleum Corporation exceeds 10 million tons！

On December 5, reporters learned from the Daqing Oilfield of China National Petroleum Corporation that the annual output of Daqing Gulong shale oil has exceeded one million metric tons. This milestone marks the culmination of five years of exploration and development by the Daqing Oilfield, during which it has achieved breakthroughs in two foundational theories: in-situ enrichment of terrestrial shale oil and multi-phase, multi-field, multi-scale development. Additionally, it has developed five key technologies, establishing itself as an original technology hub for argillaceous-laminated shale oil of terrestrial origin.

▲ A pump operator from the Fracturing Team of the Downhole Operation Branch performs maintenance on high-pressure components at the Gulong shale oil site. Photo by Han Jing

China's shale oil is widely distributed, with significant potential for spatial utilization, and its resource volume exceeds that of conventional oil and gas. It has become an important strategic replacement resource and a key area for increasing reserves and production.

However, for a long time, the petroleum exploration field has regarded "shale oil extraction as extremely difficult," often referred to as a "forbidden zone" for exploration and development. Daqing Gulong shale oil, as a typical terrestrial argillaceous-laminated shale oil, primarily features nanoscale reservoir pores—only 1/500th the size of a human hair—making its development relatively more challenging. Internationally renowned oil companies once asserted that it "lacks commercial development value."

"The nation's needs are our driving force for hard work, dedication, and relentless effort," said Zhu Guowen, Secretary of the Party Committee of Daqing Oilfield. He emphasized that the oilfield keeps in mind the significant responsibilities entrusted to it, vigorously promotes the Daqing Spirit and the Iron Man Spirit, and has designated the exploration and development of Gulong shale oil as the "No. 1 Project." By pooling the entire oilfield's resources to tackle key challenges, it has transformed this "unexplored territory" into a "potential area" for increasing reserves and production.

▲ Personnel from the Shale Oil Production Operation Project Management Department of the No. 9 Oil Production Plant conduct on-site inspections at Test Zone 2 of the Gulong Shale Oil site.

Over the past five years, the Daqing Oilfield has achieved a leapfrog increase in shale oil production, from "zero" to "1 million metric tons." In 2020, the Guye Youping 1 well encountered oil. In 2021, key exploratory wells yielded high outputs, with annual shale oil production reaching 15,000 metric tons. In 2022, 58 horizontal wells across five pilot development well groups were fully drilled, and fracturing technologies underwent iterative upgrades. In 2023, the expanded development test area of Guye 8H1 successfully integrated reserve increase with production capacity building. All 54 wells were put into operation, with results exceeding the plan’s expectations. A technical template for high-yield benchmark wells was established, effectively guiding the large-scale development of the Q9 oil reservoir in the light oil core area. Annual shale oil production reached 171,000 metric tons. In 2024, a "production mega-operation" management mechanism was implemented, setting multiple records: a 97% penetration rate in primary layers, the shortest drilling cycle of 9.63 days, the longest horizontal section of 4,080 meters, the highest single-day fracturing of 12 stages, the highest daily oil production per well of 102.0 cubic meters, and an oil and gas equivalent of 102.8 metric tons per well. This year, the Ministry of Natural Resources reviewed and approved the proven reserves of 158 million metric tons for the Daqing Gulong Terrestrial Shale Oil National Demonstration Zone. Production has now exceeded 1 million metric tons, achieving year-on-year doubling and rapid production growth.

Shale gas production requires essential sand removal equipment like desanders.

Shale gas desanding refers to the process of removing solid impurities such as sand grains, fracturing sand (proppant), and rock cuttings from shale gas streams (with entrained water) through physical or mechanical methods during shale gas extraction and production.

As shale gas is primarily obtained through hydraulic fracturing technology (fracturing extraction), the returned fluid often contains large amounts of sand grains from the formation and residual solid ceramic particles from fracturing operations. If these solid particles are not completely separated early in the process flow, they would cause severe erosion to pipelines, valves, compressors and other equipment, or lead to pipeline blockages in low-lying sections, clogging of instrument pressure guide pipes, or trigger production safety incidents.

SAGA's shale gas desander delivers exceptional performance with its precision separation capability (98% removal rate for 10-micron particles), authoritative certifications (DNV/GL-issued ISO certification and NACE anti-corrosion compliance), and long-lasting durability (featuring wear-resistant ceramic internals with anti-clogging design). Engineered for effortless efficiency, it offers easy installation, simple operation and maintenance, along with extended service life – making it the optimal solution for reliable shale gas production.

Our company is continuously committed to developing more efficient, compact, and cost-effective desander while also focusing on environmentally friendly innovations.

Our desanders come in a wide variety of types and have extensive applications. In addition to shale gas desanders, such as High-efficiency Cyclone Desander, Wellhead Desander, Cyclonic Well stream crude Desander With Ceramic Liners, Water injection Desander，Natural Gas Desander, etc.

SAGA's desanders have been used on wellhead platforms and production platforms in gas and oil fields such as CNOOC, PetroChina, Malaysia Petronas，Indonesia， the Gulf of Thailand, and others. They are used to remove solids in gas or well fluid or produced water, as well as seawater solidification removal or production recovery. Water injection and water flooding to increase production and other occasions.

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