Discovery and petroleum geological significance of delta in the third member of Oligocene Lingshui Formation in southern Baodao Sag,Qiongdongnan Basin,South China Sea

Based on the 3D seismic data and the analysis and test data of lithology,electricity,thin sections and chronology obtained from drilling of the Qiongdongnan Basin,the characteristics and the quantitative analysis of the source-sink system are studied of the third member of the Upper Oligocene Lingshui Formation(Ling 3 Member)in the southern fault step zone of the Baodao Sag.First,the YL10 denudation area of the Ling 3 Member mainly developed two fluvial systems in the east and west,resulting in the formation of two dominant sand transport channels and two delta lobes in southern Baodao Sag,which are generally large in the west and small in the east.The evolution of the delta has experienced four stages:initiation,prosperity,intermittence and rejuvenation.Second,the source-sink coupled quantitative calculation is performed depending on the parameters of the delta sand bodies,including development phases,distribution area,flattening thickness,area of different parent rocks,and sand-forming coefficient,showing that the study area has the material basis for the formation of large-scale reservoir.Third,the drilling reveals that the delta of the Ling 3 Member is dominated by fine sandstone,with total sandstone thickness of 109-138 m,maximum single-layer sandstone thickness of 15.5-30.0 m,and sand-to-strata ratio of 43.7%-73.0%,but the physical properties are different among the fault steps.Fourth,the large delta development model of the small source area in the step fault zone with multi-stage uplift is established.It suggests that the episodic uplift provides sufficient sediments,the fluvial system and watershed area control the scale of the sand body,the multi-step active fault steps dominate the sand body transport channel,and local fault troughs decide the lateral propulsion direction of the sand body.The delta of the Ling 3 Member is coupled with fault blocks to form diverse traps,which are critical exploration targets in southern Baodao Sag.

Seismic Facies in a Deepwater Area of a Marine Faulted Basin:Deepwater Area of the Paleogene Lingshui Formation in the Qiongdongnan Basin

In recent years, deep water areas have become popular exploration fields because of their abundant hydrocarbon resource potential. There are only relatively poor planar seismic profiles and no wells for deepwater areas of the Lingshui Formation in the Qiongdongnan Basin. A lot of faults developed and strata are fragmented due to high temperatures and high pressure, and this has resulted in dim sequence boundaries. Based on seismic data of the deepwater area and well data of bordering shallow water areas, Lingshui Formation was divided into four third class sequences; namely SI, SII, SIII and SIV, and the three-dimensional isochronous stratigraphic framework of the Lingshui Formation in the studied area was shaped. Based mainly on seismic attributes such as amplitude, continuity, internal structure and external shape, six typical seismic facies were identified, including mat-shaped, filling, wedge-shaped, foreset, moundy-shaped and lenticular-shaped, and a seismic facies distribution map was subsequently drawn. With studies on wells of bordering shallow water areas, regional sedimentary characteristics, and isopach map as references, sedimentary planar distribution features were analyzed. The deepwater area of the Lingshui Formation has mainly developed littoral and shallow sea. Sandstone bodies of fan delta, braided river delta, slope fan, basin floor fan, and turbidite fan are at an interdigitate junction to marine hydrocarbon source rocks and thus are favorable prospecting targets.

Kinetics and model of gas generation of source rocks in the deepwater area, Qiongdongnan Basin

In order to investigate the hydrocarbon generation process and gas potentials of source rocks in deepwater area of the Qiongdongnan Basin, kinetic parameters of gas generation （activation energy distribution and frequency factor） of the Yacheng Formation source rocks （coal and neritic mudstones） was determined by thermal simulation experiments in the closed system and the specific KINETICS Software. The results show that the activation energy （Ea） distribution of C1–C5 generation ranges from 50 to 74 kcal/mol with a frequency factor of 2.4×1015 s–1 for the neritic mudstone and the Ea distribution of C1–C5 generation ranges from 49 to 73 kcal/mol with a frequency factor of 8.92×1013 s–1 for the coal. On the basis of these kinetic parameters and combined with the data of sedimentary burial and paleothermal histories, the gas generation model of the Yacheng Formation source rocks closer to geological condition was worked out, indicating its main gas generation stage at Ro （vitrinite reflectance） of 1.25%–2.8%. Meanwhile, the gas generation process of the source rocks of different structural locations （central part, southern slope and south low uplift） in the Lingshui Sag was simulated. Among them, the gas generation of the Yacheng Formation source rocks in the central part and the southern slope of the sag entered the main gas window at 10 and 5 Ma respectively and the peak gas generation in the southern slope occurred at 3 Ma. The very late peak gas generation and the relatively large gas potential indices （GPI：20×10^8–60×10^8 m^3/km^2） would provide favorable conditions for the accumulation of large natural gas reserves in the deepwater area.

Geochemistry of borehole cutting shale and natural gas accumulation in the deepwater area of the Zhujiang River Mouth-Qiongdongnan Basin in the northern South China Sea

The Qiongdongnan Basin and Zhujiang River（Pearl River） Mouth Basin, important petroliferous basins in the northern South China Sea, contain abundant oil and gas resource. In this study, on basis of discussing impact of oil-base mud on TOC content and Rock-Eval parameters of cutting shale samples, the authors did comprehensive analysis of source rock quality, thermal evolution and control effect of source rock in gas accumulation of the Qiongdongnan and the Zhujiang River Mouth Basins. The contrast analysis of TOC contents and Rock-Eval parameters before and after extraction for cutting shale samples indicates that except for a weaker impact on Rock-Eval parameter S2, oil-base mud has certain impact on Rock-Eval S1, Tmax and TOC contents. When concerning oil-base mud influence on source rock geochemistry parameters, the shales in the Yacheng/Enping,Lingshui/Zhuhai and Sanya/Zhuhai Formations have mainly Type Ⅱ and Ⅲ organic matter with better gas potential and oil potential. The thermal evolution analysis suggests that the depth interval of the oil window is between 3 000 m and 5 000 m. Source rocks in the deepwater area have generated abundant gas mainly due to the late stage of the oil window and the high-supper mature stage. Gas reservoir formation condition analysis made clear that the source rock is the primary factor and fault is a necessary condition for gas accumulation. Spatial coupling of source, fault and reservoir is essential for gas accumulation and the inside of hydrocarbon-generating sag is future potential gas exploration area.

Evaluation of abundant hydrocarbon-generation depressions in the deepwater area of Qiongdongnan Basin,South China Sea

It has been confirmed that the key source rocks of Qiongdongnan Basin are associated with the Yacheng Formation, which was deposited in a transitional marine-continental environment. Because the distribution and evolution patterns of the source rocks in the major depressions are different, it is important to determine the most abundant hydrocarbon-generation depressions in terms of exploration effectiveness. Based on an analysis of organic matter characteristics of the source rocks, in combination with drilling data and seismic data, this paper establishes a model to evaluate the hydrocarbon-generation depressions in the deepwater area of Qiongdongnan Basin. First of all, by using the method of seismic-facies model analysis, the distribution of sedimentary facies was determined. Then, the sedimentary facies were correlated with the organic facies, and the distribution of organic facies was predicted. Meanwhile, the thickness of source rocks for all the depressions was calculated on the basis of a quantitative analysis of seismic velocity and lithology. The relationship between mudstone porosity and vitrinite reflectance（Ro） was used to predict the maturity of source rocks. Second, using the parameters such as thickness and maturity of source rocks, the quantity and intensity of gas generation for Yacheng and Lingshui Formations were calculated. Finally, in combination with the identified hydrocarbon resources, the quantity and intensity of gas generation were used as a guide to establish an evaluation standard for hydrocarbon-generation depressions, which was optimized for the main depressions in the Central Depression Belt. It is proposed that Lingshui, Ledong, Baodao and Changchang Depressions are the most abundant hydrocarbon depressions, whilst Songnan and Beijiao Depressions are rich hydrocarbon depressions. Such an evaluation procedure is beneficial to the next stage of exploration in the deep-water area of Qiongdongnan Basin.

Hydrocarbon Accumulation Condition and Exploration Direction in the Deepwater Area of Qiongdongnan Basin,Northern South China Sea

The deepwater area of southern Qiongdongnan Basin is a hydrocarbon exploration frontier and mainly located on the continental slope in the northwestern South China Sea.Its tectonic and depositional evolution is similar to the typical marginal deepwater areas abroad where oils have been discovered.Favorable hydrocarbon conditions in this area are as follows:(1) three sets of source rocks (including lacustrine mudstone of Eocene,coastal plain coal-bearing strata and semi-closed shallow sea mudstone of Oligocene,and marine mudstone

Chemical kinetics evaluation and its application of natural gas generation derived from the Yacheng Formation in the deep-water area of the Qiongdongnan Basin,China

The natural gas generation process is simulated by heating source rocks of the Yacheng Formation, including the onshore-offshore mudstone and coal with kerogens of Type II2-III in the Qiongdongnan Basin. The aim is to quantify the natural gas generation from the Yacheng Formation and to evaluate the geological prediction and kinetic parameters using an optimization procedure based on the basin modeling of the shallow-water area. For this, the hydrocarbons produced have been grouped into four classes（C1, C2, C3 and C4-6）. The results show that the onset temperature of methane generation is predicted to occur at 110℃ during the thermal history of sediments since 5.3 Ma by using data extrapolation. The hydrocarbon potential for ethane, propane and heavy gaseous hydrocarbons（C4-6） is found to be almost exhausted at geological temperature of 200℃ when the transformation ratio（TR） is over 0.8, but for which methane is determined to be about 0.5 in the shallow-water area. In contrast, the end temperature of the methane generation in the deep-water area was over 300℃ with a TR over 0.8. It plays an important role in the natural gas exploration of the deep-water basin and other basins in the broad ocean areas of China. Therefore, the natural gas exploration for the deep-water area in the Qiongdongnan Basin shall first aim at the structural traps in the Ledong, Lingshui and Beijiao sags, and in the forward direction of the structure around the sags, and then gradually develop toward the non-structural trap in the deep-water area basin of the broad ocean areas of China.

Structural characteristics of central depression belt in deep-water area of the Qiongdongnan Basin and the hydrocarbon discovery of Songnan low bulge

The Qiongdongnan Basin has the first proprietary high-yield gas field in deep-water areas of China and makes the significant breakthroughs in oil and gas exploration.The central depression belt of deep-water area in the Qiongdongnan Basin is constituted by five sags,i.e.Ledong Sag,Lingshui Sag,Songnan Sag,Baodao Sag and Changchang Sag.It is a Cenozoic extensional basin with the basement of pre-Paleogene as a whole.The structural research in central depression belt of deep-water area in the Qiongdongnan Basin has the important meaning in solving the basic geological problems,and improving the exploration of oil and gas of this basin.The seismic interpretation and structural analysis in this article was operated with the 3D seismic of about 1.5×104 km2 and the 2D seismic of about 1×104 km.Eighteen sampling points were selected to calculate the fault activity rates of the No.2 Fault.The deposition rate was calculated by the ratio of residual formation thickness to deposition time scale.The paleo-geomorphic restoration was obtained by residual thickness method and impression method.The faults in the central depression belt of deep-water area of this basin were mainly developed during Paleogene,and chiefly trend in NE–SW,E–W and NW–SE directions.The architectures of these sags change regularly from east to west:the asymmetric grabens are developed in the Ledong Sag,western Lingshui Sag,eastern Baodao Sag,and western Changchang Sag;half-grabens are developed in the Songnan Sag,eastern Lingshui Sag,and eastern Changchang Sag.The tectonic evolution history in deep-water area of this basin can be divided into three stages,i.e.faulted-depression stage,thermal subsidence stage,and neotectonic stage.The Ledong-Lingshui sags,near the Red River Fault,developed large-scale sedimentary and subsidence by the uplift of Qinghai-Tibet Plateau during neotectonic stage.The Baodao-Changchang sags,near the northwest oceanic sub-basin,developed the large-scale magmatic activities and the transition of stress direction by the expansion of the South China Sea.The east sag belt and west sag belt of the deep-water area in the Qiongdongnan Basin,separated by the ancient Songnan bulge,present prominent differences in deposition filling,diaper genesis,and sag connectivity.The west sag belt has the advantages in high maturity,well-developed fluid diapirs and channel sand bodies,thus it has superior conditions for oil and gas migration and accumulation.The east sag belt is qualified by the abundant resources of oil and gas.The Paleogene of Songnan low bulge,located between the west sag belt and the east sag belt,is the exploration potential.The YL 8 area,located in the southwestern high part of the Songnan low bulge,is a favorable target for the future gas exploration.The Well 8-1-1 was drilled in August 2018 and obtained potential business discovery,and the Well YL8-3-1 was drilled in July 2019 and obtained the business discovery.

Experimental Simulation Study of the Dominant Enrichment Area of Terrestrial Organic Matter in the Shallow-Delta Sedimentary System of the Yacheng Formation in the Qiongdongnan Basin

Shallow-delta sedimentary systems receive both terrestrial and marine organic matter. As oil and gas exploration activities determine that the source rocks of the deep-water area of the Qiongdongnan Basin, northern South China Sea, are generally rich in and even dominated by terrestrial organic matter, this has led many researchers to examine the rules governing terrestrial organic matter enrichment in shallow-delta sea sedimentary systems. However, the deep burial of source rocks in deep-water areas and the relatively small amount of drilling undertaken have greatly restricted the study of these rules. In this study, the ‘forward modeling' research method was used to observe and analyze the deposition and preservation of terrestrial organic matter through flume experiments, where the depositional results were carefully depicted and sampled. The total organic carbon content of selected samples was measured and when combined with qualitative observations and quantitative comparison results, the dominant enrichment areas of terrestrial organic matter were identified. The experimental results show that the overbank parts of the delta front, the dune countercurrent surface, the low-lying parts, the delta front slope area and the shallow-prodelta sea area are where terrestrial organic matter is predominantly enriched. This provides an important basis and guidance for the prediction of the development areas of marine source rocks with terrestrial input in the deep-water areas of the Qiongdongnan Basin.

Analysis of the world deepwater oil and gas exploration situation

The global trends in deepwater oil and gas exploration,characteristics of deepwater oil and gas discovery,and layout of deepwater oil and gas exploration business by seven major international oil companies are systematically analyzed using commercial databases(e.g.S&P Global and Rystad)and public information of oil companies.The deepwater area is currently the most important domain for global oil and gas exploration and discovery,with the most discoveries and reserves in passive continental margin basins.The deepwater discoveries have the greatest contribution to the total newly discovered oil and gas reserves in the sea areas,with an increasing number of lithological reservoirs discovered,and oil and gas discoveries mainly distributed in the Mesozoic–Cenozoic.The seven major international oil companies are widely active in various aspects of deepwater oil and gas exploration and development,and play a leading role.Based on years of theoretical understanding of global oil and gas geology and resource evaluation,it is proposed that favorable deepwater exploration areas in the future will mainly focus on three major areas:the Atlantic coast,the Indian Ocean periphery,and the Arctic Ocean periphery.Six suggestions are put forward for expanding overseas deepwater oil and gas exploration business:first,expand the sources for obtaining multi-user seismic data and improve the scientific selection of deepwater exploration areas;second,increase efforts to obtain deepwater exploration projects in key areas;third,adopt various methods to access into/exit from resource licenses flexibly;fourth,acquire licenses with large equity and operate in“dual-exploration”model;fifth,strengthen cooperation with leading international oil companies in deepwater technology;and sixth,improve business operation capabilities and gradually transform from“non-operators”to“operators”.

Research advance in sediment provenance of the Qiongdongnan Basin

1 Introduction Sediment provenance study,as an important part of basin analysis,is a key for source area definition,paleogeographic reconstruction,sediment transport route identification,and tectonic evolution(Haughton et al.,1991;Morton et al.,1999;Fontanelli et al.,2009;Cawood et al.,2012).The Qiongdongnan Basin(QDNB),lies in the northwestern passive continental margin of the South

Identification methods of coal-bearing source rocks for Yacheng Formation in the western deepwater area of South China Sea

Owing to the fact that the coal-beds are with the characteristics of multi-beds, thin single-bed, rapid lateral changes and deep burial, coal-bearing source rocks are difficult to be identified and predicted, especially in the lower exploration deepwater area. In this paper, a new integrative process utilizing geology and geophysics is proposed for better predicting the distribution of coal-bearing source rocks. Coal-beds were identified by the logging responses of“three higher, three lower, and one expand”and carbargilite were recognized by the characteristics of“four higher and one lower”. Based on the above logical decision, coal-beds and carbargilite can be distinguished automatically by cluster analysis of logging curves in verticality. Within the constraints of well-seismic calibration, the coal-beds group also can be detected in horizontality by the integrated representation of“negative phase, higher Q, lower impedance and lower frequency”within the seismic data. However, the distribution of coal-bearing source rocks utilizing geophysical methodology may do not conform to the geological rules of coal accumulation. And then the main geological controlling factors of coal accumulation are comprehensively analyzed as follows：（1） Paleotopography and tectonic subsidence determine the planar range of terrestrial-marine transitional facies markedly;（2） The relative sea level changes affect the accommodation space and shoreline migration, and limit the vertical range of coal-beds. More specifically, the relationship between the accommodation creation rate and the peat accumulation rate is a fundamental control on coal accumulation. The thickest and most widespread coals form where those two factors reached a state of balance;（3） The supply of autochthonous clasts and the distance between deposition places and paleovegetation accumulated area are the critical factor to form abundant coal, which means that if deposition area is close to paleouplift, there would be sufficient organic matters to form abundant source rocks. The results show that the integrated methods can significantly improve prediction accuracy of coal-bearing source rocks, which is suitable for early exploration of western deepwater area of South China Sea.

Geology and hydrocarbon accumulations in the deepwater of the northwestern South China Sea——with focus on natural gas

The deepwater of the northwestern South China Sea is located in the central to southern parts of the Qiongdongnan Basin （QDN Basin）, which is a key site for hydrocarbon exploration in recent years. In this study, the authors did a comprehensive analysis of gravity-magnetic data, extensive 3D seismic survey, cores and cuttings, paleontology and geochemical indexes, proposed the mechanism of natural gas origin, identified different oil and gas systems, and established the model of hydrocarbon accumulations in the deep-water region. Our basin tectonic simulation indicates that the evolution of QDN Basin was controlled by multiple-phased tectonic movements, such as Indochina-Eurasian Plate collision, Tibetan Uplift, Red River faulting and the expansion of the South China Sea which is characterized by Paleogene rifting, Neogene depression, and Eocene intensive faulting and lacustrine deposits. The drilling results show that this region is dominated by marine- terrestrial transitional and neritic-bathyal facies from the early Oligocene. The Yacheng Formation of the early Oligocene is rich in organic matter and a main gas-source rock. According to the geological-geochemical data from the latest drilling wells, Lingshui, Baodao, Changchang Sags have good hydrocarbon-generating potentials, where two plays from the Paleogene and Neogene reservoirs were developed. Those reservoirs occur in central canyon structural-lithologic trap zone, Changchang marginal trap zone and southern fault terrace of Baodao Sag. Among them, the central canyon trap zone has a great potential for exploration because the various reservoir- forming elements are well developed, i.e., good coal-measure source rocks, sufficient reservoirs from the Neogene turbidity sandstone and submarine fan, faults connecting source rock and reservoirs, effective vertical migration, late stage aggregation and favorable structural-lithological composite trapping. These study results provide an important scientific basis for hydrocarbon exploration in this region, evidenced by the recent discovery of the significant commercial LS-A gas field in the central canyon of the Lingshui Sag.

Evolution of deepwater sedimentary environments and its implication for hydrocarbon exploration in Qiongdongnan Basin, northwestern South China Sea

Over the past several years, a number of hydrocarbon reservoirs have been discovered in the deepwater area of Qiongdongnan Basin, northwestern South China Sea. These oil/gas fields demonstrate that the evolution of the deepwater sedimentary environment are controlling the formation and distribution of large-scale clastic reservoirs. Integration between seismic and borehole data were necessary to best clarify the distribution and quality of these deepwater reservoirs. Geochemical and paleobiological evidence from discrete samples was also applied to document specific information regarding the sedimentary environment. Results show that the Qiongdongnan Basin has existed as a thriving marine environment since Oligocene, when several rifting depressions developed throughout the entire Qiongdongnan Basin. Triggered by the faults activities, several distinct provenances supplied the coarse sediments, transporting and depositing them in deep parts of the rifting depressions. A fan delta system then formed nearby the source in the deeper area of these rifting depressions. The sedimentary environment of Qiongdongnan gradiationally became deepwater since early Miocene. Consequently, abundances of sediments were transported from Hainan Island and Southern Uplift, and then sunk into the basin center. The submarine fans revealed by many boreholes in this area verified them as good reservoir. Because the area reached its lowest sea level at late Miocene and the Southern Uplift subsidenced under sea level, not providing any sediment, so that the carbonate mesa and biorhythms characteristic of this area also developed during this period. In the west part of Qiongdongnan Basin, sediments transported from Vietnam increased in response to the Tibetan Uplift. Consequently, a central canyon developed along the center of Qiongdongnan Basin, which has been confirmed by several boreholes as a favorable hydrocarbon reservoir. The clarification of the deepwater sedimentary environment’s evolution is potentially highly beneficial to future hydrocarbon exploration in the deepwater area of Qiongdongnan Basin.

Features of Late Cenozoic Deepwater Sedimentation in Southern Qiongdongnan Basin, Northwestern South China Sea

Based on high resolution 2D and 3D seismic data acquired in recent years, using sequence stratigraphy analysis and geophysical methods, we discuss the features of Late Cenozoic deepwater sedimentation in the southern Qiongdongnan （琼东南） basin. The study area entered a bathyal slope environment in the Miocene. The channel developed in the Sanya （三亚） Formation was controlled by a fault break, and its shingled seismic characteristics represent multiple erosion and fill, which may indicate that turbidite current developed in the slope environment. The polygon faults found in mudstone of the Meishan （梅山） Formation represent the deepwater hungry sedimentary environment. The large-scale channels developed on the top of Huangliu （黄流） Formation could be the result of a big sea level drop and an increase of sediment supply. The fantastic turbidite channel developed in Late Quaternary in the slope environment has ＂fan-like＂ body and long frontal tiny avulsion channel. The analysis of these features suggests that the sediment supply of the study area in the post-rifting period was dominant from the Vietnam uplift in the southwest. These deepwater sedimentary features could be potential reservoirs or migration pathways for deepwater petroleum systems.

Reservoir forming conditions and key exploration technologies of Lingshui 17-2 giant gas field in deepwater area of Qiongdongnan Basin

On September 15,2014,China National Offshore Oil Co.,Ltd announced that a high production of oil and gas flow of 1.6
106 m3/d was obtained in Well LS17-2-1 in deepwater area in northern South China Sea,which is the first great oil and gas discovery for self-run deepwater exploration in China sea areas,and a strategic breakthrough was made in natural gas exploration in deepwater area of Lingshui sag in Qiongdongnan Basin.Under the combined action of climax of international deepwater exploration,high oil prices,national demands of China,practical needs of exploration,breakthroughs in seismic exploration and testing technologies,innovations in geological cognition and breakthroughs in deepwater operation equipment,Lingshui 17-2 gas field is discovered.Among these factors,the innovation in reservoir forming geological cognition directly promotes the discovery.The quality of seismic data in the early time is poor,so key reservoir forming conditions such as effective source rocks,high quality reservoirs and oil-gas migration pathways are unable to be ascertained;with support of new seismic acquisition and processing technology,some researches show that Lingshui sag is a successive large and deep sag with an area of 5000 km2 and the maximum thickness of Cenozoic stratum of 13 km.In the Early Oligocene,the Lingshui sag was a semi-closed delta-estuarine environment,where the coalmeasure and marine mudstones in Lower Oligocene Yacheng Formation were developed.The Lingshui sag is a sag with high temperature,and the bottom temperature of source rocks in Yacheng Formation can exceed 250C,but the simulation experiment of hydrocarbon generation at high temperature indicates that the main part of this set of source rock is still in the gas-generation window,with resources of nearly 1 trillion cubic meters,so the Lingshui sag is a hydrocarbon-rich generation sag.In the Neogene,the axial canyon channel from the Thu Bon River in Vietnam passed through the Lingshui sag,and five stages of secondary channels were developed in the axial canyon channel,where four types of reservoirs with excellent physical properties including the axial sand,lateral accretion sand,natural levee sand as well as erosion residual sand were developed,and lithologic traps or structural-lithologic traps were formed.The diapiric zone in the southern Lingshui sag connects deep source rocks in Yacheng Formation and shallow sandstones in the channels,and the migration pattern of natural gas is a T-type migration pattern,in other words,the natural gas generated from Yacheng Formation migrates vertically to the interior of the channel sandbody,and then migrates laterally in the channel reservoirs and forms the reservoirs.Innovations of geophysical exploration technologies for complicated geological conditions of deepwater areas are made,such as the detuning comprehensive quantitative amplitude hydrocarbon detection technology,which greatly improves the success rate of deepwater exploration;key technologies of deepwater safety exploratory well testing represented by the platform-dragged riser displacement technology are developed,which greatly reduces the drilling test cost.The above key exploration technologies provide a strong guarantee for the efficient exploration and development of Lingshui gas field.

深水中大型气田滚动勘探技术体系与成效——以琼东南盆地中央峡谷A边际气田为例

为了促进琼东南盆地中央峡谷深水A边际气田开发,引入目标搜索研究、目标评价研究、目标钻探研究等完整气田滚动勘探技术体系。A边际气田目标搜索除利用传统的区带油气潜力目标搜索技术外,提出评价过程目标搜索技术,共搜索了5个油气潜力区块,并优选A4构造进行油气目标评价。从圈闭解释与落实、圈闭烃类检测两方面对A4构造油气成藏主控因素开展研究。A4构造中部预测优势含气区具有强振幅属性、低密度、低速度、低纵波阻抗、低纵横波速度比等有利含气信息特征,总体为Ⅲ类AVO异常,且能够升级HL_0气组控制天然气地质储量,部署滚动探井A4-1井实施钻探,在黄流组钻遇气层超20 m,莺歌海组二段钻遇可疑气层近10 m,获得天然气探明地质储量近30亿立方米,钻探效果好。滚动勘探研究在深水A边际气田的应用,不仅有效地促进了A边际气田后续滚动勘探活动,而且证实了滚动勘探同样适用于深水油气勘探。

基于动态物源演变的“源-汇”分析——以琼东南盆地松南地区陵水组为例

琼东南盆地作为中国重点含油气盆地,其勘探重点逐渐向盆内深水区拓展。作为盆内重要物源的松南地区,其构造地貌存在典型的坡控特点,与盆缘断控地区具有明显差异。海平面的周期性旋回变化,致使油气勘探过程中可能忽视早期局部物源存在,制约了松南地区规模性储集体的寻找工作。本文以物源的动态演化为核心,认为松南地区主要发育“动态多期型”和“动态淹没型”2大动态物源体系。前者在陵水组沉积时期实际成扇的有效供源面积呈递减趋势,于陵三段低位期、高位期及陵二段低位期形成近源扇三角洲沉积;后者在陵三段低位域时期存在规模性局部物源,发育扇三角洲沉积体系。松南地区动态物源体系受海平面旋回变化与构造地貌共同影响,隆起区整体呈现“早期供源成扇,晚期作为水下隆起控坝”的沉积规律。对动态物源体系“源-汇”要素的定量分析显示,源区规模、渠道深度及古水系组合样式是松南地区动态物源体系砂体沉积的主控因素,即低水位期规模性物源、高陡地形强下切沟道、平缓背景下多级复合古水系,有利于汇水区规模性扇体发育。

琼东南盆地宝岛21-1区陵水组沉积特征及其油气地质意义

近期在琼东南盆地宝岛21-1区发现了我国首个深水深层大气田,对南海深水区深层油气勘探研究具有重要意义。基于宝岛21-1区最新获得的钻井和地震资料,分析了上渐新统陵水组三段的沉积特征及其油气地质意义。结果表明,陵三段沉积时期以双向物源为主,早期扇三角洲沉积发育于邻近高地,晚期辫状河三角洲沉积受NW向海南隆起物源和NE向神狐隆起物源的控制。此外,陡坡和缓坡的沉积物搬运通道表现出较大差异。陵三段沉积演化可分为3个阶段:由早期扇三角洲沉积、中期扇三角洲-辫状河三角洲沉积发展至晚期辫状河三角洲沉积,物源区也从早期邻近高地的单向供源、中期邻近高地-神狐隆起的双向供源演化至晚期海南隆起-神狐隆起的双向供源。研究区邻近崖城组烃源岩,发育12-1号断裂及伴生断裂,形成构造-岩性圈闭,成藏地质条件优越。宝岛21-1区气田的发现是我国深水油气勘探领域的重大突破,指明了海相盆地中断裂转换带是未来深水勘探的关键区域。

莺歌海-琼东南盆地油气勘探新进展与思考

南海莺歌海-琼东南盆地是中国最重要的海上天然气产区之一,长期以来面临深水深层、高温高压和低渗等问题,随着勘探程度不断提高,勘探目标隐蔽性增强、发现难度加大。近期加强区域与目标研究一体化、地质与地球物理研究一体化,在多个领域取得地质新认识,2023年在多个领域取得油气勘探新突破。①针对琼东南盆地深水超浅层气领域,提出“深浅双源供烃、气烟囱-海底扇复式高效输导、深海泥-块体流-含水合物地层联合封盖”成藏新认识,发现了全球首个超深水超浅层大气田——陵水36-1;②在莺歌海超压低渗气藏领域,取得“沉积水动力控储、地形-物性遮挡控水”成藏新认识,盘活了东方11-2超压低渗天然气田;③在莺东断阶带深层、乐东-陵水凹陷梅山组海底扇领域、崖城13-1周缘深层双古领域和环宝岛周缘,取得多项油气成藏新认识,获得多点勘探突破。建议今后加强区域地质与油气成藏规律的综合研究,加大深水超浅层油气成藏与超压低渗气成藏新认识的深化研究和推广应用,推进深水深层、古潜山、海底扇岩性、边缘凹陷原油等新领域的勘探进程,以确保南海万亿大气区未来油气储量的稳步增长。