On October 27, Jiao Fangzheng, Chairman of the Petroleum Society of China, Academician Zou Caineng of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, and Academician Sun Jinsheng of the Chinese Academy of Engineering visited the National Engineering Research Center, accompanied by Guo Bingzheng, Deputy General Manager and Safety Director of the Coalbed Methane Company.

The delegation visited the Coal–Rock Experiment Subcenter and the Daji 70 Well “Iron Column,” and listened to a briefing on the Center’s progress and achievements.

Academician Zou Caineng highlighted the need to address the “three black boxes” in coal–rock gas research — the theoretical unknowns, technological immaturity, and lifecycle uncertainties. He proposed conducting foundational studies across three systems: gas storage, gas content, and gas production, and called for accelerated evaluation of transitional marine–continental shale gas and coordinated research on the co-production of coal–rock gas, tight gas, and shale gas.

Academician Sun Jinsheng emphasized strengthening basic research to support engineering technologies, improving coordination in laboratory equipment use, developing new experimental evaluation methods, and accelerating the establishment of a comprehensive coal–rock gas engineering and micro-damage evaluation system.

Jiao Fangzheng acknowledged the National Engineering Research Center’s strong experimental capabilities, notable exploration achievements, and talented research team. He noted that the company’s breakthroughs in deep coalbed methane have created significant impact across the energy sector, reigniting domestic interest in CBM exploration and development. Jiao stressed that the Center shoulders an important national responsibility: to serve as a think tank, to deliver high-level research outcomes, and to lead the country’s coalbed methane industry toward healthy, scientific development.

For future work, he proposed four key directions:

1. Strengthening fundamental research — including coal–rock characteristics, experimental innovation, resource evaluation indicators, and engineering parameter systems — to resolve core industry debates.

2. Overcoming experimental and technical bottlenecks — deepening traditional lab capabilities while developing advanced, high-precision testing systems.

3. Focusing on key research areas — such as sedimentary features, lithology series, diagenetic evolution, gas content and physical properties, gas–water flow characteristics, cleat structures, and engineering parameters — to yield rapid innovation results.

4. Enhancing talent and innovation capacity — building a first-class engineering center with clear performance benchmarks in equipment, research output, and talent cultivation, and contributing to the high-quality development of China’s coalbed methane industry.

Guo Bingzheng extended a warm welcome and gratitude to the visiting leaders and experts, noting that their guidance demonstrates strong support and expectations for the Center’s growth. He added that recent advances in coal–rock gas research were achieved under the leadership of the CNPC Party Committee, and that the experts’ insights will further advance China’s theoretical and technological progress in coal–rock gas development. The National Engineering Research Center will continue to drive innovation, research, and standards development to deliver results that meet national and corporate expectations.

Members of the Petroleum Society of China, chief experts from the Coalbed Methane Company, and staff of the National Engineering Research Center attended the symposium.