Tectonic Evolution of the Eastern Mediterranean Basin and Its Significance for the Hydrocarbon Prospectivity of the Nile Delta Deepwater Area
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GeoArabia, Vol. 6, No. 3, 2001 Gulf PetroLink, Bahrain Tectonic Evolution of the Egyptian Mediterranean Basin Tectonic Evolution of the Eastern Mediterranean Basin and its Significance for the Hydrocarbon Prospectivity of the Nile Delta Deepwater Area Ahmed Abdel Aal1 , Ahmed El Barkooky, Marc Gerrits, Hans-Jürg Meyer, Marcus Schwander and Hala Zaki Shell Egypt NV ABSTRACT The deepwater area of the Nile Delta is within the eastern Mediterranean basin on the Nile Delta Cone between the Herodotus abyssal plain to the west and the Levant basin to the east. The complex evolution and interaction of the African, Eurasian and Arabian plates have shaped the Late Miocene to Recent Nile Cone and its substratum. The tectono- stratigraphic framework is controlled by deep-seated basement structures with distinct gravity and magnetic expressions, and by the interaction of the NW-trending Misfaq- Bardawil (Temsah) and NE-trending Qattara-Eratosthenes (Rosetta) fault zones. In addition, significant salt-induced deformation of a Messinian evaporitic sequence up to 4,000 m thick has occurred, together with large-scale rotational block movement. The deformational pattern is largely the result of multiphase tectonic movements along pre- existing basement faults on the continental margin of the Neo-Tethys ocean. The Nile Cone consists of late Paleogene to Late Miocene sediments that pre-date the Messinian evaporites, and Pliocene-Pleistocene sequences. In the east, the pre-salt deposits (as much as 3,000 m thick) are primarily deepwater sediments with local condensed sequences over syndepositional intrabasinal highs. Shale occurs westward across the Rosetta trend. The Messinian evaporitic sequence exhibits three distinct seismic facies suggesting cyclic deposition with the occurrence of interbedded anhydrite, salt and clastic sequences and pure halite deposition. During the Messinian salinity crisis, large-scale canyons were excavated that resulted in multiphase cut-and-fill clastic systems. The Pliocene-Pleistocene sequences were deposited in a slope to basin-floor setting. Exploration targets are the Pliocene-Pleistocene deepwater channel and basin-floor turbidite sands in a variety of structural settings. Water depths range from 800 to 2,800 m. The Upper Miocene sequence offers additional exploration objectives in the form of fluvial and/or turbidite sands. The focus of pre-salt exploration is the delineation of distal turbidities within the Serravallian to Tortonian sequence and the identification of new reservoir sequences deposited on pre-existing intrabasinal highs. Hydrocarbon charge has yet to be proven by drilling, but seismic amplitude anomalies and the occurrence of natural surface slicks suggest both gas and liquid charges from pre-salt source rocks through faults and salt-withdrawal windows. INTRODUCTION The NE Mediterranean Deepwater Block (NEMED) of 41,500 sq km (Figure 1) was awarded to Shell Egypt (100%) in July 1998. The pre-effective letter was signed on November 25, 1998 allowing operations to start on February 1, 1999 with the acquisition of a 7,000 km, 2-D (6 km cable, 8 seconds, 120 fold) seismic survey. Key pre-1999 data were 1,500 km of 2-D seismic acquired by the Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation in 1973. In December 1999, Exxon Exploration and Production Egypt Limited obtained a 25 percent interest in the concession. Current exploration activity includes the acquisition of a 7,000 sq km area of 3-D seismic aimed at the identification of exploration targets. The evaluation 1 Present address: Shell Houston, USA 363 Downloaded from http://pubs.geoscienceworld.org/geoarabia/article-pdf/6/3/363/4564261/aal.pdf by guest on 26 September 2021 Abdel Aal et al. challenge of the initial 2-D campaign was to identify the main plays and the target area of the 3-D survey by integrating seismic with new gravity and aeromagnetic data. The Block is exceptional for its size and its location in front of a major productive delta. The newly acquired 2-D seismic data has enabled mapping of the geology of the whole concession for the first time and shows that it contains four distinct geological domains, each with unique play characteristics. Of these, only the Nile Delta gas/condensate Pliocene and Miocene Platform domain has been tested. No wells have been drilled in the Deepwater Block, but direct hydrocarbon indicators on seismic attest to a high probability of charge. The nearest wells are in the Scarab and Saffron gas fields to the south in the West Delta Deep Marine concession (Figure 2). Shallow boreholes of the Deep-Sea Drilling Project (DSDP) Leg 160 provide data in the area of the Erastothenes Seamount and to the west of Cyprus (Figure 2). During seismic acquisition, approximately 10,000 km of onboard gravity data was acquired and fully integrated with the available satellite gravity data. In addition, some 30,750 line-km of high-resolution aeromagnetic data is available. In the central and eastern part of the block, the line spacing is 2 x 10 km, increasing in the west and northwestern areas to 4 x 20 km. Special studies focused on quantitative seismic interpretation (development of the rock property database, amplitude versus offset, and other hydrocarbon indicator studies) integrated seismic and potential field-data analysis, surface slick analysis and basin modeling. Thirty-five years of exploration activity in the Nile Delta has led to the discovery of about 3.8 billion barrels oil equivalent (BOE), primarily gas and condensate (Figure 2). The newly acquired 2-D seismic data have substantially upgraded the prospectivity of the Block’s ultra-deepwater area. Based on the results of the 2-D seismic data, 7,000 sq km of 3-D data was acquired. The survey covers the prospective parts of the Platform, Diapir Salt and Rotated Fault Block play areas in water depths of less than 2,000 m. 25°E2927° ° 31° 33° 35° TURKEY 36°N 36° Crete CYPRUS Mediterranean Sea 34° 34° MediterraneanRidge Eratosthenes Seamount NE Mediterranean Deepwater Block (NEMED) N Nile Cone 0 32° Cairo Nile Delta (meters) Bathymetry EGYPT 0km 100 3,000 29° 31° 33° 35° Figure 1: Regional geographic setting of the NE Mediterranean Deepwater Block (NEMED). 364 Downloaded from http://pubs.geoscienceworld.org/geoarabia/article-pdf/6/3/363/4564261/aal.pdf by guest on 26 September 2021 Tectonic Evolution of the Egyptian Mediterranean Basin ° 25 E TURKEY ° ° 36° 36 N 36 N 27°E3129° ° 33° 35° Crete CYPRUS Mediterranean Sea X' 34° 34° 34° A NEMED C B C' B' A' 32° 32° 32° N 0 100 X km EGYPT 25° 27° 29° 31° 33° 35° ° ° ° 30 E3231 Nile Delta well Nile Delta Discoveries Gas field 3.8 billion BOE 1,000 m Mediterranean Sea Deep Sea Drilling 32°N 32° Project sites 200 m Saffron Scarab Shell 1999 2-D seismic Baltim N. Ha'py Akhen Nile Delta seismic Seth Temsah Rosetta Baltim E. Asfour Seti X–X' Figure 4 Baltim S. Abu Seif A–A' Figure 6a N. Abu Qir El Qar'a Kersh / Abu B–B' Figure 6b Zakn / Wakar Abu Port Fuad C–C' Figure 6c Abu Qir Madi W. Abu Qir 31° EGYPT 31° 30° 31° 32° Figure 2: NE Mediterranean Deepwater Block database: locations of Nile Delta wells and gas fields, seismic surveys, and shallow wells of the Deep Sea Drilling Project. TECTONIC FRAMEWORK AND STRUCTURAL SETTING Plate Tectonic Framework The Northeast Mediterranean Sea Deepwater Block is situated near to the northern margin of the African Plate. The plate is being actively subducted (presumably since the Late Cretaceous) along the destructive, compressional plate boundary south of Crete and Cyprus (Strabo-Pliny/Cyprus trenches; Figure 3). Seismic refraction and potential-field data (magnetic and gravity) do not yet 365 Downloaded from http://pubs.geoscienceworld.org/geoarabia/article-pdf/6/3/363/4564261/aal.pdf by guest on 26 September 2021 Abdel Aal et al. 25°E2927° ° 31° TURKEY 35° ° ° 36 N TURKISH PLATE 36 Crete X' Cy CYPRUS h pru nc s e Tr Tr en ch liny - P bo Misfaq-Bardawil 34° ra 34° St s e n Mediterranean Ridge e h t ESM s to ARABIAN PLATE ra AFRICAN PLATE E NEMED Levant Basin Figure 4 (T 32° em 32° Herodotus Abyssal Plain sa N h) ) ta Nile Delta et X 0 100 os R ra( EGYPT km a ° ° ° tt ° ° ° 25 27 29 Qa 31 33 35 Figure 3: Regional geological setting of the NE Mediterranean Deepwater Block (ESM = Eratosthenes Seamount). allow a firm statement on the nature of the crust underlying the Pliocene-Pleistocene Nile Cone. What appear to be present are a thinned crust and an elevated crust/mantle boundary at a depth of 18 to 20 km. This contrasts with the Egyptian mainland and the Eratosthenes Seamount (Figures 1 and 3), where refraction and potential-field data indicate a complete upper and lower continental crust 30 to 40 km thick (Figure 4). South North X Upper Miocene Salt Cyprus Trench X' 0 Mediterranean Sea Nile Cone 6.0–6.5 Eratosthenes 10 Seamount Cyprus ophiolite complex Continental crust ?? 20 Below sea-level (km) Moho Crustal velocities (km/sec) 6.5–6.7 0 100 30 Mantle km 300 150 Bouguer gravity Gammas Milligals 0 0 Magnetics Figure 4: Structural cross-section from the Nile Cone to Cyprus showing crustal seismic velocities (km/sec) and gravity and magnetic profiles (modified from Hirch et al., 1995). See Figures 2 and 3 for location of XX‘. 366 Downloaded from http://pubs.geoscienceworld.org/geoarabia/article-pdf/6/3/363/4564261/aal.pdf by guest on 26 September 2021 Tectonic Evolution of the Egyptian Mediterranean Basin Various authors (Morelli, 1978; Biju-Duval et al., 1979; Dixon et al., 1984; Geiss, 1987; and Hirsch et al., 1995) envisage the presence of an oceanic crust, the maximum age of which, however, is disputed and not constrained by direct observations.