OREANDA-NEWS. February 05, 2013. Development drilling has been concluded while the shallow water phase is more than 80% complete and the onshore gas processing plant is two-thirds complete, the company said.

Husky will operate the deepwater portion of the field, including development drilling and completions, while CNOOC will operate the shallow water infrastructure, including the platform, subsea pipeline to shore and the onshore gas processing plant.

China has approved the development plan for the deepwater Liwan 3-1 gas project in the South China Sea, the National Development and Reform Commission said.

This will be one of China's biggest gas projects to come online in recent years and will be a huge boost to the country's offshore production.

It lies in Block 29/26 about 300 kilometers southeast of Hong Kong and is spearheaded by Canada's Husky Energy with 49%, partnering state company China National Offshore Oil Corp. with the remaining 51%. First gas is expected late this year or early 2014, before peaking at over 500,000 Mcf/day in 2015 once the neighboring Liuhua 29-1 field is tied back to production facilities.

The project is progressing according to plan, with the deepwater portion already 75% complete, Husky said in a corporate presentation.