Further Recognition of Petroleum Exploration Potential of Marine Carbonates in Western Tarim Basin

A series of significant discoveries in marine carbonate rocks show great petroleum exploration potential in the Tarim Basin. However, the oil and gas fields discovered in the carbonate rocks are mainly distributed around the Manjiaer Sag in the eastern Tarim Basin. Some explorations occurred and no oil or gas field was discovered around the Awati Sag in the western Tarim Basin. Information from wells and outcrops reveals that there are excellent oil and gas source rock conditions around the Awati Sag. Transformed reef-shoal reservoirs could be formed in the Ordovician carbonate rocks with paleo-geographic background and hydrothermal conditions. Therefore, it is necessary to make a systematical study and overall evaluation of the potential of the periphery of the Awati Sag in terms of source rock evolution, resource potential, high-grade reservoir formation and distribution, and main factors controlling hydrocarbon migration and accumulation.

Dynamic simulation of differential accumulation history of deep marine oil and gas in superimposed basin:A case study of Lower Paleozoic petroleum system of Tahe Oilfield,Tarim Basin,NW China

According to the complex differential accumulation history of deep marine oil and gas in superimposed basins,the Lower Paleozoic petroleum system in Tahe Oilfield of Tarim Basin is selected as a typical case,and the process of hydrocarbon generation and expulsion,migration and accumulation,adjustment and transformation of deep oil and gas is restored by means of reservoine-forming dynamics simulation.The thermal evolution history of the Lower Cambrian source rocks in Tahe Oilfield reflects the obvious differences in hydrocarbon generation and expulsion process and intensity in different tectonic zones,which is the main reason controlling the differences in deep oil and gas phases.The complex transport system composed of strike-slip fault and unconformity,etc.controlled early migration and accumulation and late adjustment of deep oil and gas,while the Middle Cambrian gypsum-salt rock in inner carbonate platform prevented vertical migration and accumulation of deep oil and gas,resulting in an obvious"fault-controlled"feature of deep oil and gas,in which the low potential area superimposed by the NE-strike-slip fault zone and deep oil and gas migration was conducive to accumulation,and it is mainly beaded along the strike-slip fault zone in the northeast direction.The dynamic simulation of reservoir formation reveals that the spatio-temporal configuration of"source-fault-fracture-gypsum-preservation"controls the differential accumulation of deep oil and gas in Tahe Oilfield.The Ordovician has experienced the accumulation history of multiple periods of charging,vertical migration and accumulation,and lateral adjustment and transformation,and deep oil and gas have always been in the dynamic equilibrium of migration,accumulation and escape.The statistics of residual oil and gas show that the deep stratum of Tahe Oilfield still has exploration and development potential in the Ordovician Yingshan Formation and Penglaiba Formation,and the Middle and Upper Cambrian ultra-deep stratum has a certain oil and gas resource prospect.This study provides a reference for the dynamic quantitative evaluation of deep oil and gas in the Tarim Basin,and also provides a reference for the study of reservoir formation and evolution in carbonate reservoir of paleo-craton basin.

Formation and distribution characteristics of Proterozoic–Lower Paleozoic marine giant oil and gas fields worldwide

There are rich oil and gas resources in marine carbonate strata worldwide.Although most of the oil and gas reserves discovered so far are mainly distributed in Mesozoic,Cenozoic,and upper Paleozoic strata,oil and gas exploration in the Proterozoic–Lower Paleozoic（PLP）strata—the oldest marine strata—has been very limited.To more clearly understand the oil and gas formation conditions and distributions in the PLP marine carbonate strata,we analyzed and characterized the petroleum geological conditions,oil and gas reservoir types,and their distributions in thirteen giant oil and gas fields worldwide.This study reveals the main factors controlling their formation and distribution.Our analyses show that the source rocks for these giant oil and gas fields are mainly shale with a great abundance of type I–II organic matter and a high thermal evolution extent.The reservoirs are mainly gas reservoirs,and the reservoir rocks are dominated by dolomite.The reservoir types are mainly karst and reef–shoal bodies with well-developed dissolved pores and cavities,intercrystalline pores,and fractures.These reservoirs arehighly heterogeneous.The burial depth of the reservoirs is highly variable and somewhat negatively correlated to the porosity.The cap rocks are mainly thick evaporites and shales,with the thickness of the cap rocks positively correlated to the oil and gas reserves.The development of high-quality evaporite cap rock is highly favorable for oil and gas preservation.We identified four hydrocarbon generation models,and that the major source rocks have undergone a long period of burial and thermal evolution and are characterized by early and long periods of hydrocarbon generation.These giant oil and gas fields have diverse types of reservoirs and are mainly distributed in paleo-uplifts,slope zones,and platform margin reef-shoal bodies.The main factors that control their formation and distribution were identified,enabling the prediction of new favorable areas for oil and gas exploration.