(ECNS) -- Kaipingnan oilfield, China's first deep-water oilfield with proven reserves of over 102 million metric tons has been discovered in the Pearl River Estuary Basin of the South China Sea, according to the China National Offshore Oil Corporation on Friday.

At 300 kilometers off the city of Shenzhen in south China's Guangdong Province, the oilfield boasts a major light crude oil field with an average water depth of over 500 meters and the largest well depth of 4,831 meters.

The reservoir, buried at a depth of 100.6 meters, is estimated to produce oil and gas of more than 1,000 metric tons daily, setting a new record in China's deep-water oilfields.

The discovery fully demonstrates the broad prospects for deep water exploration in the South China Sea, said Liu Jun, chief geologist of CNOOC Shenzhen Branch.

In recent years, China has strengthened scientific research and achieved large-scale oil and gas discoveries such as the Bozhong 26-6 oilfield and Baodao 21-1 deep water gas field.

Exploration, development, construction, and operation of the Kaipingnan oilfield will drive the development of shipbuilding, steel, electromechanical and other industries.