Chinese State-owned oil and gas giant China National Offshore Oil Corp (CNOOC) has tapped commercial flows of oil and gas from a shale exploration well in the South China Sea, the first successfully drilled shale oil well offshore.

By month’s end, the Treasury Department will finalise designs and related details of 3,400 “Pracharat” housing units, which will be built on state-owned lands starting with Bangkok Metropolitan and Chiang Rai province. Department chief Jakkrit Paraphantha