BEIJING, Feb. 13 -- China is set to build a deep-sea research facility in the resource-rich South China Sea, a move that could strengthen its territorial claims while advancing marine exploration.
According to the South China Morning Post, the 2,000-meter-deep station will allow scientists to study methane-rich cold seep ecosystems, which hold vast deposits of methane hydrates and rare minerals.
It is estimated that the South China Sea holds 70 billion tonnes of methane hydrates, or approximately 50 per cent of China's entire know oil-and-gas reserves.
The ocean is also known to have cobalt and nickel concentrations three times higher than land-based mines, as well as various fauna critical for medical research.
Expected to be operation...