17 November 2025 · Shanghai

The Coordinating Committee for Geoscience Programmes in East and Southeast Asia (CCOP) marked its continued strategic partnership with the Energy China Forum 2025 · 15th Asia-Pacific Unconventional Energy Conference (ECF2025), held on 22–24 October in Shanghai, China.

For 12 consecutive years, CCOP has been one of the most important co-organizers of ECF, contributing significantly to the conference’s growth into a leading regional platform for unconventional oil & gas, CCUS, hydrogen, geothermal and emerging low-carbon energy systems.

Since 2016, CCOP and ECF have jointly established the ECF Energy Technology Innovation Award, now recognized across the Asia-Pacific as a respected platform for technological advancements from both traditional and frontier energy fields.

Photo 1: Group photo at the opening of ECF2025, attended by representatives from CCOP, government agencies, industry partners and academic institutions.

A Landmark Edition: Renaming Reflects Broader Vision and Deeper Integration

ECF2025 brought together more than 300 participants from government, academia, national oil companies, research institutes and international organizations. A key milestone of this year’s conference was the official adoption of its new name — “Asia-Pacific Unconventional Energy Conference” — a change that reflects ECF’s evolution from a shale-focused forum into a comprehensive platform integrating unconventional resources with low-carbon innovation and intelligent energy systems.

Photo 2: Mr. Ma Yongzheng, Director of the CCOP Technical Secretariat, participating in the renaming ceremony of the Asia-Pacific Unconventional Energy Conference at ECF2025

During the renaming ceremony, CCOP Technical Secretariat Director Ma Yongzheng delivered a message encapsulated in the phrase:

“聚焦亚太，辐射全球 — Focus on Asia-Pacific, Radiate to the World.”

His remarks emphasized ECF’s growing regional influence and its role in connecting Asia-Pacific expertise with global innovation networks.

Director Ma Yongzheng: Deepening CCOP–ECF Cooperation for Regional Impact

Representing CCOP at the opening session, Director Ma highlighted:

· ECF’s strategic transformation, noting its expanded focus on low-carbon technologies and intelligent development.

· the strong diversity of participants, reflecting ECF’s position as a bridge among government, industry and academia.

· three defining strengths of ECF2025: intelligent development, low-carbon innovation and stronger industry–research integration.

· CCOP’s commitment to continuing deep cooperation with ECF to deliver impactful results for Member Countries.

Photo 3: Opening remarks delivered by Mr. Ma Yongzheng, Director of the CCOP Technical Secretariat, at ECF2025

Director Ma also served as a key presenter at the 10^th ECF Energy Technology Innovation Award, reaffirming CCOP’s long-standing support for scientific innovation and regional collaboration.

Photo 4: The 10th ECF Energy Technology Innovation Award presented by Ms. Chen Xin, Vice Chair of Shanghai Association for Science and Technology, and Mr. Ma Yongzheng, Director of the CCOP Technical Secretariat

Continuity of Collaboration: Participation of Former CCOP Director

Dr. Young Joo Lee, former Director of the CCOP Technical Secretariat and now Chief Researcher at KIGAM, joined ECF2025 as an invited expert and delivered a talk on regional cooperation in unconventional resources and future energy. His participation symbolized the continuity of CCOP’s collaboration with ECF over the past decade.

Institutional Perspective: ECF’s Expanded Scope Aligns with CCOP Priorities

Beyond the conference sessions, CCOP recognizes ECF2025 as a platform highly aligned with its institutional priorities, including:

· unconventional gas resource assessment,

· CCUS capacity building and site evaluation,

· hydrogen and future subsurface energy systems,

· digital and intelligent geoscience tools,

· youth development through programmes such as the ECF Youth Expert initiative.

These shared areas provide a solid basis for deeper cooperation among CCOP, ECF and regional partners.

Looking Ahead

CCOP extends its appreciation to the Energy China Forum and the Shanghai United Institute for Unconventional Resources (SUI) for their long-standing partnership and contribution to regional geoscience collaboration.

As ECF enters a new phase under its expanded “Asia-Pacific Unconventional Energy” vision, CCOP looks forward to further strengthening cooperation to support scientific exchange, technology innovation and low-carbon development across the Asia-Pacific region.