4 | Halliburton Landmark
Sequence Stratigraphy and Paleogeography of the Middle Cretaceous of Arabia : Exploration for Stratigraphic Plays
by : Alex Bromhead , Frans van Buchem , and Mike Simmons
Highly detailed planet Earth in the morning © 2013
Shutterstock with elements of this image furnished by NASA .
The Middle Cretaceous of the Arabian Plate is one of the most prolific conventional petroleum systems in the world . Cenomanian – Turonian stratigraphy of the Mishrif Formation ( and regional equivalents ) contains high-quality conventional carbonate reservoirs . Most hydrocarbon fields are in structural closures , but undrilled structures are now scarce within this mature petroleum province . Exploration potential exists in more subtle stratigraphic traps , particularly subcrop traps beneath a regional Turonian unconformity . However , successful exploration for this play concept is geologically complex and challenging . It requires a detailed understanding of facies change , which is ultimately related to the paleogeography and morphology of the depositional system . This has been characterized at high temporal resolution , and at the scale of the Arabian Plate , within Neftex ® datasets .
THE VALUE OF A SEQUENCE STRATIGRAPHIC FRAMEWORK
Applying the Neftex Sequence Stratigraphic Model provides a framework for the consistent interpretation of the Middle Cretaceous across the Arabian Plate .
Figure 1 is a stratigraphic synthesis of the depositional environments and lithostratigraphy within the Albian – Turonian in different areas of the Arabian Plate . The lithostratigraphy often changes across country borders , which can make stratigraphic correlation even more challenging . Furthermore , lithostratigraphic terms are used inconsistently , resulting in confusion .