Geological surveys, started in 1938 by the Manchuria Petroleum Co. and two other mining development companies, confirmed the original discovery and found several anticlines in the Fuhsin area which indicated the presence of a large oil field. Test borings were begun in August 1939, and oil was finally struck on April 28 at a depth of about 100 meters. The extent of the new oil field is not definitely known, but apparently it is potentially important. Japanese reports not only state that further investigations have disclosed the presence of four oil-bearing strata running 100 kilometers east and west, but they also suggest that other deposits are to be found in the locality up to a depth of several thousand meters.
In the exploitation of the new field, Manchoukuo is reported to be negotiating with Japan for a supply of mining materials and for engineers, and the Japan Petroleum Co. may take a part in its development. However, the problem of who is to work the Fuhsin field is still up in the air. Three plans are said to be under consideration: first, development by the Manchuria Petroleum Co., which runs the Manchouku oil monopoly and operates an oil refinery at Dairen using imported crude oil; secondly, the formation of a new company; and thirdly, the detachment of the Fuhsin coal field from the Manchuria Coal Mining Co., and the formation of a new company for the joint exploitation of coal and iron resources. The latter seems the more logical method, for the oil strata at Fuhsin are said to be found above and below the coal seams. At Fushun, where the oil shale overlies the coal beds, both the coal mine and the oil shale plant are run by one company, the S.M.R. It is also important that the exploitation of the new oil field should not interfere with the expansion of coal production. The Fuhsin mines are the most successful of the new mines developed by the Manchuria Coal Mining Co. and are now second only to Fushun in output.