Basin Description and Classifications of Petroleum Reservoir

Because of the burial and temperature requirements needed for the maturation of
organic matter, most petroleum will be found in sedimentary basins. Sedimentary
basins are depressions on the earth's surface, caused by subsidence, that receive
greater-than-average sediment thicknesses.
Most basins have sediment fills in excess of 2 kilometers, and some may contain 10
or more kilometers of sedimentary rock. This is usually sufficient for at least part of
their contained organic matter to mature to petroleum.
However, being within the "oil window" is not enough. The petroleum richness of
sedimentary basins, or even the presence of petroleum at all, is also highly
dependent on source rock and reservoir development, migration pathways,
geothermal regime, style and timing of trap development, and the presence of good
sealing lithologies. The age of the sedimentary rocks within a basin is also of some
importance.
Even though petroleum reserves can be found in rocks of all ages, most giant fields
and most of the world's reserves occur in sequences, of Late Mesozoic and Cenozoic
age (Figure 1). Paleozoic rocks probably had potential to generate hydrocarbons
equal to that of these younger rocks, but there has been more time in which to
destroy all or part of the petroleum through uplift and erosion (Halbouty et al, 1970).

Figure 1

Petroleum enrichment, the incidence of giant fields, and the habitat of petroleum
within sedimentary basins can be related to structural, sedimentological, and
geothermal settings, which can be used to describe a number of petroleum basin
types.
There are several general ways in which sedimentary basins can be grouped (Figure
2).

Figure 2
They can be divided on the basis of their underlying material or crust:
continental crust, which is relatively light, granitic and underlies most continental areas;
or,
intermediate crust, compositionally between
occurring along continent-ocean margins.

granite

and

basalt

and

They may also be grouped according to the stability and movement of this underlying crust, as
either;
cratonic basins, developed on the stable parts of continents away from continental
margins;
divergent-margin basins, formed along continental margins where the sea
floor is spreading and rift-drift (extensional) movements occur; or,
convergent-margin basins, formed along continental margins where
continents and/or oceans are in collision and some ocean crust may be
consumed.
For the purpose of petroleum exploration, however, we need a finer-tuned classification scheme
such as the ten-part basin classification scheme based on the work of Huff (1980) and Klemme
(1980), which is summarized in Figure 3 .

Figure 3

Worldwide reserves can be related to their location within a petroleum basin,

regardless of its basin type (Figure 4).

Figure 4

Most petroleum is found along a basin's flanks, either along hinges that mark the
break between the basin and normal sediment thicknesses of the shelf, or along
mobile rims. A sizeable amount of petroleum, about 18%, also occurs in extrabasinal
settings. For example, in the central United States, a regional stratigraphic high that
received thinner-than-average sediment persisted for most of the last 600 million
years. Yet this region, the Cincinnati arch, is a major petroleum province and has
some giant field production.
Oil usually becomes lighter and gas more abundant with depth in most sedimentary
basins. Oil also becomes lighter and gas more prevalent laterally toward a basin's
center. The heaviest crude is typically found along basin margins. This lateral and
vertical distribution of oil and gas is of considerable importance to exploration. Part
of this pattern may be attributed to increased thermal maturation with depth.
However, another explanation is that the lighter gas displaces earlier formed oil that
had already accumulated in the trap (Gussow, 1954). When the trap becomes full to
its spill point, the oil is displaced and moves upward toward the basin's flanks.

Exploration of a Petroleum Basin

Petroleum exploration can be divided into a series of critical information phases. With
each step, there is a progressively increasing data base, from which to evaluate the
petroleum prospects of a region.
Phase I is the stage of early surface mapping and reconnaissance geophysics (Figure
1).

Figure 1

It begins with the unexplored basin. To varying degrees, there may be some previous
knowledge of surface geology and structures. There may also have been reports of
surface indications (e.g., surface seeps, springs, asphaltic vein-fillings, gas detected
in water wells, etc.) to encourage the exploration. Surface evidence of petroleum has
been important in the discovery of nearly every major onshore petroleum province in
the world (Levorsen, 1979), although there are also major areas with abundant
surface evidence that have proven to be subcommercial (e.g., Cuba and Morocco).
At this stage, the geologist's role is to obtain a more detailed knowledge of surface
structures (i.e., potential traps) and evaluate other aspects critical to the exploration
task, such as sedimentary facies, continentality, and possible metamorphism. The
exploration geologist must work closely with the geophysicist to relate the surface
stratigraphic and structures to the subsurface. At this stage, a geologic analog is
often used to compare the unexplored basin to other producing "look-alike" basins
which appear to have common geologic characteristics.
Phase II is the stage of seismic survey (Figure 2).

Figure 2
(This is the initial step, in offshore exploration.) During this stage, more data is
obtained on the depth configuration of potential traps and hopefully some knowledge
of the character and volume of the sedimentary fill is gained. It has generally been
observed that the chances of finding commercial oil is roughly in proportion to the
total sediment volume (Levorsen, 1979), particularly if most of it lies within the
depth range of the oil and gas window (Klemme, 1980). The volume of subsurface
shale (source potential) is also evaluated.
Phase III is the stage of exploratory or "wildcat" drilling, which establishes for the
first time a detailed sampling of the sediment character (reservoir, source and
caprock potential), maturation, and the geothermal regime (Figure 3).

Figure 3
The potential for a discovery exists at this stage, since the most promising prospects,
usually surface or seismically detected subsurface structures are drilled first.
However, even a dry hole is not necessarily a total failure. It can supply a large
amount of data (e.g., subcommercial shows; water-filled reservoir downdip from a
possible pinchout, etc.) that, if intelligently studied, may lead to the placement of
new wildcat wells.
Phase IV, the discovery phase, follows the successful completion of some wildcat
wells (Figure 4).

Figure 4

At this stage, reservoirs are established and hydrocarbon types may be linked to
certain stratigraphic units and/or trap types. Further wildcat drilling in less developed
parts of the basin may be guided in part by the play and petroleum zone concepts. A
play is defined as a group of geologically similar, "look-alike" prospects, usually at

fixed horizons sharing common stratigraphic features (lithology, unconformity). A

basin may also be divisible into discrete petroleum zones. These are sediment
volumes whose contained pools show several characteristics in common. Application
of the play and petroleum zone concepts usually causes the success ratio of drilling
(discovered fields/tested prospects; or bbls. found/thickness drilled) to improve
during the discovery stage. Many of the basin's largest fields will have been
discovered, and exploration for more subtle traps may commence.
Phase V, the production phase, begins to provide exploration geologists with reserve
estimates and a history of the hydrocarbon potential of the basin ( Figure 5 ). There
is enough information to work out field-size distribution patterns, which may help
guide further exploration as the area matures. Both the field size of new discoveries
and the success rate of drilling typically tapers off during this stage.

Figure 5

Commonly, not all of a sedimentary basin is at the same stage of drilling and
development at the same time. Part of the basin may be maturely drilled, while other
areas that may have appeared initially less geologically favored, or were less accessible,
may still be only semi-mature or untested. Also, shallower depths may have been
thoroughly tested and have established production, while at the same time deeper
stratigraphic horizons may be only at the seismic survey or wildcat stages of
development. It is significant that new discoveries are still being made in sedimentary
basins where drilling and development have proceeded for 50 or more years.