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Current Situation, Prospect and Challenges: Exploration and Development of China Shale Gas Resources and a Case StudyAbstractShale gas is a special type of unconventional natural gas resource. This paper conducted in-depth investigation into and summed up history and successful experience from the exploration and development of the shale gas reservoirs in China. Unlike conventional natural gas reservoirs, shale gas reservoirs have their special characters from the aspects of geology and development. Oil and gas operators regarded the shale gas as their important target for natural gas development, and achieved great success by their effective policy and advanced drilling and completion technologies including horizontal well and hydraulic fracturing in China’s principal petroleum corporations. This paper also points out the challenges existing in shale gas exploration and exploitation in China, including water deficiency in resource areas, higher clay contents in the reservoirs and lacks of the pipeline infrastructure. Finally, a successful case was introduced in Fuling, Sinopec with the core analysis, the effective well drilling and stimulating processes. The daily gas production is more than 270×104m3/day and the cumulative gas production is 370 million cu m. IntroductionAmerica is the first country for the commercial shale gas exploration and development in the world. The shale gas yield of America is close to 900×108 m3 in 2009.The high-speed exploration and development of shale gas makes the natural gas reserves of America increase by 40%.Canada is the second country for the commercial shale gas exploration and development in the world, and the exploration and development is mainly in Horn River Basin and Triassic Montney shale, the northeastern British Columbia (Zou Caineng, 2010). In recent years, the exploration and development is also in other provinces. According to the shale gas exploration and development characteristics and successful experience of North