Ask HN: Could Project Deep Earth be the reason of Aykol earthquakes?

2 points

2 years ago

Per this old news Sinopec started drilling deepest oil and gas wells in Shaya County of Aksu Prefecture in the Tarim Basin, Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region. The projected depth of the well could reach 10km. https://www.prnewswire.com/in/news-releases/sinopec-starts-the-drilling-of-asias-deepest-oil-and-gas-well-in-tarim-basin-301815952.html

Nowadays, there are a number of earthquakes with epicenter located in Aykol, located in approximately 300km from the drilling site. https://database.earth/earthquakes/china/xinjiang/aykol. In 2024 (within 2 months) there were 97 earthquakes in Aykol, Xinjiang, see here https://database.earth/earthquakes/china/xinjiang/aykol

Could deep drilling be the reasons of such earthquake activity?