Shandong Gold Group has announced that it has discovered what it claims is China's largest gold deposit.
The Xiling gold seam, located in eastern China's Shandong province, is estimated to contain 382 tons of the precious metal but could eventually yield up to 550 tons.
If the deposit turns out to hold only 382 tons of gold it would still be worth around $22 billion at the current gold price of around $1254 an ounce.
It is estimated to have the equivalent of 20 percent of the China's 1843 tons of gold reserves.
Once at full capacity the mine could reportedly remain in production for 40 years.
China has the world's fifth largest gold reserves and is seeking to increase its total by 3,000 tons to as much as 14,000 tons by 2020, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology said last month.
Shares in Shandong surged on the news, climbing 2.8 percent in Shanghai.