Abstract: Data collection and analysis, investigation to typical oil and gas fields, and the exploration progress and trends of neighboring countries in recent five years have been carried out using statistical methods and based on the geological background in the South China Sea. The results show that:(1) The newly discovered oil and gas reservoirs are mainly distributed in the Pearl River Mouth Basin, the Qiongdongnan Basin, the Yinggehai Basin in the northern South China sea and the Meigong Basin, Wan'an Basin, Zengmu Basin and Brunei-Sabah Basin in the central-southern South China Sea; (2) Structural reservoirs in delta and fan-delta sandstones account for the most, but lithologic reservoirs in deep-water sedimentary bodies contribute to the largest cumulative reserves; and (3) Oil and gas are mainly enriched in the Middle Miocene reservoirs, followed by the Upper Paleocene and Upper Miocene reservoirs. Specifically, the results show that:(1) Deepwater area has become the main exploration battlefield and reserve succeeding area; lithologic reservoirs accumulated in deep-water sedimentary bodies and those in organic reefs have become the main contributor to new reserves in the South China Sea. (2) The Miocene organic reefs directly on source or source side are the most realistic exploration target in the central-southern basins; the Pre-Paleogene buried hill reservoir is an important potential exploration target in the northwestern South China Sea; and the lithologic bodies formed by differential compaction and the updip pinchout bodies are main traps for reservoirs associated with deep-water sediments in the continental slope.

Key words: South China Sea, deep-water sediments, organic reefs, buried hills, deep-water exploration, Zengmu Basin, Yinggehai Basin