According to a Weixin report (in Chinese) on 22 October, 2019, using a semi-submersible drilling platform (Blue Whale One) measuring 117m x 92.7m x 118m tall in the South China Sea, China achieved the world's first breakthrough in extracting scalable quantities of methane hydrates ("inflammable ice"). The project was reported in the South China Morning Post on 19 May, 2017
The strategic significance is obvious. As the largest energy consumer, China has to rely on oil and gas imports over long distances through "choke points" (e.g. the Strait of Hormuz and the Malacca Strait) vulnerable to foreign powers. On the environmental front, China is the world's largest coal consumer, contributing to carbon emissions and smogs in many Chinese cities.
Methane hydrates are a lot less polluting but ten times more energy- rich per unit compared to coal, oil, and natural gas. It is estimated that one cubic meter of methane hydrates is equivalent to 160 cubic meters of natural gas.
The global reserve of methane hydrates is twice as much as all other known fossil fuels combined, enough for 1,000 years of human consumption. China's gas hydrates reserve is estimated at 100 billion tons of oil-equivalents, of which 80% lies in the South China Sea.
The successful extraction marks a significant milestone in utilization of alternative sources of energy for China. It also explains why China has been so assertive to safeguard territorial claims in the South China Sea.
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