中國瞄準南海石油天然氣資源

HONG KONG — For the past several years, China has been throwing its weight around the South China Sea, a body of water studded with coral reefs that laps at the shores of not only China but also Vietnam, Malaysia, the Philippines, Brunei and Taiwan.

香港——過去幾年，中國在南海各處施展拳腳。這片點綴着珊瑚礁的水域，不僅毗鄰中國的海岸，也連接着越南、馬來西亞、菲律賓、文萊和臺灣的海岸。

China has sent ships to stake claims across the area, notably when a flotilla that included the country’s most advanced amphibious assault vessel arrived at James Shoal, 50 miles east of Malaysia’s coast, in 2013.

中國會派出船隻，在南海各處宣示主權，特別是2013年，一支中國艦隊，攜該國最先進的兩棲突擊艦，抵達了馬來西亞海岸以東50英里（約合80公里）處的曾母暗沙。

Much of this muscle-flexing is political. China is a rising power and the South China Sea is a logical place for it to exercise its growing strength. The sea is a vital freight lane, through which a third of global shipping traffic passes. It is also a main focus of geopolitical jockeying for both Beijing and the United States, which has been strengthening its relations with the Philippines, Malaysia and Vietnam.

這樣的實力展示，很多都出於政治考慮。中國是一個正在崛起的大國，要找地方展示其不斷壯大的實力，南海是一個順理成章的選擇。南海是重要的貨運通道，承擔了全球船運通行量的三分之一。它也是中美地緣政治角力的一個重要焦點，而美國一直在增進與菲律賓、馬來西亞和越南的關係。

There is another reason for China’s interest in the South China Sea: the large quantities of oil and natural gas that might lie below these waters. In May, Beijing made its interest in those resources clear when it sent a drilling rig called Haiyang Shiyou 981 into waters claimed by Vietnam. The rig is owned by China National Offshore Oil Corporation, or Cnooc, the country’s biggest offshore energy producer.

不過，中國之所以對南海感興趣，還有另外一個原因：這裏的海底可能蘊藏着大量的石油和天然氣。今年5月，北京把鑽井平臺“海洋石油981”派到越南宣示主權的海域作業，明確顯露了它對這些資源的興趣。這個鑽井平臺屬於中國海洋石油總公司（簡稱中海油），該國最大的海上能源生產商。

After the move provoked a standoff with Vietnam, the drilling rig was sent to undisputed waters near China’s island province of Hainan. In September, Cnooc said the rig had discovered a large gas field, which suggested that China had become more proficient at offshore drilling.

此舉引發了中越之間的對峙後，鑽井平臺被移動到中國海南島附近的一片沒有主權爭議的水域。9月，中海油宣佈，這座鑽井平臺發現了一個大型天然氣田。這表明，中國對海上鑽井作業已經變得更加精通。

The United States Energy Information Administration has estimated that 11 billion barrels of oil and 190 trillion cubic feet of natural gas lie below the seabed, including both proven and probable reserves. If those estimates prove correct, the South China Sea would be in the same league as Mexico, a midsize producer, and in the global top 10 in terms of gas.

據美國能源情報署(United States Energy Information Administration)估計，南海的石油儲量爲110億桶，天然氣爲190萬億立方英尺（約合5.4萬億立方米）。這些數字包括已探明的和可能的儲量。如果估算無誤，南海就會和中等規模的石油出產國墨西哥處在同一個級別上，天然氣儲量則將躋身全球十強。

The South China Sea is far from virgin territory. But so far, exploration and production of oil and gas have been confined mainly to waters off the coasts of China, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei and the Philippines, which form the sea’s perimeter along with Taiwan. The Energy Information Administration estimates that in 2011, South China Sea production by these countries amounted to 1.2 million barrels a day of oil and 3,200 billion cubic feet of natural gas. These numbers are roughly similar to the current crude production of North Dakota and to Saudi Arabia’s annual gas production in 2012.

南海遠非一片處女地。但迄今爲止，這裏的油氣勘探和生產主要在中國、越南、馬來西亞、文萊和菲律賓的近海水域進行。這些水域和臺灣一起，形成了南海的周界線。據美國能源情報署估計，2011年，這些國家在南海出產的石油約爲每天120萬桶，天然氣約爲3.2萬億立方英尺。兩個數字分別相當於美國北達科他州目前的原油產量，以及沙特阿拉伯2012年的天然氣年產量。

Oil and gas exploration has been limited not only by territorial claims but also by typhoons and technological challenges, including limited local ability to drill in deep water. Cnooc has tried to improve its capabilities through the purchase in 2012 of a Canadian company, Nexen, for about $15 billion. Nexen had acquired deep water experience from working in the Gulf of Mexico.

油氣勘探活動不僅受到領土主張的限制，也存在臺風和技術方面的挑戰，比如缺乏足夠的深水開採能力。2012年，中海油以大約150億美元的價格收購加拿大能源企業尼克森(Nexen)。此舉是爲了努力提升自身能力。尼克森在墨西哥灣作業，已獲取了深水鑽井經驗。

Researchers, too, are exploring deeper waters.

研究人員也正在考察一些較深的水域。

From Jan. 26 through March 30 of this year, the scientific vessel Joides Resolution traveled to the deeper regions in the middle of the South China Sea, where it drilled several core samples as part of the International Ocean Discovery Program’s Expedition 349.

今年1月26日到3月30日，科考船“決心號”(Joides Resolution)前往南海中部的深水區，在那裏鑽取了幾個巖芯樣本。這是“國際大洋發現計劃”(International Ocean Discovery Program)349航次的一部分內容。

Scientists from 12 countries, including China, the United States, Vietnam, the Philippines and Taiwan, participated. Dr. Li Chun-feng of the State Key Laboratory of Marine Geology at Tongji University in Shanghai served as a director. While emphasizing that the main goals were scientific, Dr. Li said evidence was found that there were “huge” oil and gas reserves beneath the sea.

來自中國、美國、越南、菲律賓和臺灣等12個國家和地區的科學家參加了這次航行。李春峯博士來自上海同濟大學海洋地質國家重點實驗室，是此行的主管之一。在強調這次考察的目的以科學研究爲主的同時，李博士也表示，有證據表明，那片水域下可能含有“巨大的”油氣儲備。

“Our expedition discovered thick organic rich sandstone and shale at the outermost continental margin and the continent-ocean transition zone, further supporting the large potential for oil and gas reserves,” Dr. Li said.

“在最外圍的大陸邊緣和大陸海洋過渡地帶，科考隊發現了厚厚的富有機質砂岩和頁岩，進一步支持了那裏含有大量油氣儲備的可能性，”李博士說。

New oil and gas pockets are being found. The Canadian oil and gas producer Husky Energy and Cnooc began commercial production at their Liwan natural gas field in the sea’s northern waters in late March.

新的石油和天然氣田也在逐漸被發現。加拿大油氣生產商赫斯基能源公司(Husky Energy Inc.)與中海油合作，二者在南海北部荔灣開展的天然氣田項目於3月下旬投入商業化生產。

The gas, which Husky discovered in 2006, is about 190 miles southeast of Hong Kong and is the largest to date for Husky, which is controlled by the Hong Kong businessman Li Ka-shing. The gas is destined for the Pearl River Delta region, which includes the industrial cities of Shenzhen and Guangzhou.

2006年，這塊氣田被香港商人李嘉誠(Li Ka-shing)控股的赫斯基公司發現。它位於香港東南約190英里處，是公司迄今爲止發現的最大氣田。這裏生產的天然氣將被輸送到工業城市深圳和廣州所在的珠三角地區。

To reduce the choking air pollution caused by burning coal, China wants to increase the proportion of gas in its overall energy use to 10 percent by 2020 from about 5 percent in 2012.

2012年，天然氣約佔中國能源總使用量的5%。爲了減少燃煤造成的嚴重大氣污染，中國希望到2020年把這個比重提高到10%。

Gas from the South China Sea would fit well with this plan.

來自南海的天然氣與這一計劃非常吻合。