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Assessment of Undiscovered Oil and Gas Resources in the Paradox Basin Province, Utah, Colorado, New Mexico, and Arizona, 2011

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Assessment of Undiscovered Oil and Gas Resources in the Paradox Basin Province, Utah, Colorado, New Mexico, and Arizona, 2011 National Assessment of Oil and Gas Assessment of Undiscovered Oil and Gas Resources in the Paradox Basin Province, Utah, Colorado, New Mexico, and Arizona, 2011 Using a geology-based assessment methodology, the U.S. Geological Survey estimated means of 560 million barrels of undiscovered oil, 12,701 billion cubic feet of undiscovered natural gas, and 490 million barrels of undiscovered natural gas liquids in the Paradox Basin of Utah, Colorado, New Mexico, and Arizona. Introduction continuous AUs, and one coalbed gas AU were quantitatively assessed. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) recently completed a geology-based assessment of the undiscovered, technically Geologic Summary recoverable oil and gas resources in the Paradox Basin, which extends into parts of Utah, Colorado, Arizona, and New Mexico The Paradox Basin formed in the Pennsylvanian as a (fig. 1). Figure 1 shows the Paradox Basin Province boundary, response to large intraplate stresses that have been attributed to as defined by Gautier and others (1996), as part of the 1995 the collision of Gondwana and Laurentia (Barbeau, 2003; Kluth USGS National Assessment. The assessment was based on the and DuChene, 2009). The basin is asymmetric, with the deep- geologic elements that define a total petroleum system (TPS), est part along the north margin, adjacent to the Uncompahgre which include petroleum source rocks (source rock maturation, uplift in Utah and Colorado (fig. 2). Interbedded salt and black petroleum generation and migration), reservoir description shales were deposited close to the north basin margin, along (reservoir presence and quality), and petroleum traps (trap with clastics shed off the Uncompahgre uplift. Penesaline and type, timing of trap formation, and timing of seal deposition). normal marine carbonates developed along the gently dipping Using this framework, seven TPSs were identified in the southwest basin margin and interfingered with the salt and black Paradox Basin. Four conventional assessment units (AU), four shales. 115°W 110°W 105°W Figure 1. Location of EXPLANATION Paradox Basin with the Permo- MONTANA Paradox Basin Province Mississippian, Coalbed Methane, Permo-Mississippian TPS and Paradox Formation Total Coalbed Gas TPS Petroleum System (TPS) Paradox Formation TPS boundaries and the Paradox 45°N Salt Basin Province boundary. The orange polygon delineates the IDAHO boundary of salt deposition. Hypothetical assessment units WYOMING not shown on map. NEVADA UTAH 40°N A’ COLORADO A 0 100 200 MILES 35°N ARIZONA NEW MEXICO CALIFORNIA 0 100 200 KILOMETERS U.S. Department of the Interior Fact Sheet 2012–3031 U.S. Geological Survey March 2012 SOUTHWEST NORTHEAST A A’ Paradox Shelf Carbonates Paradox Evaporite Basin Normal marine Restricted marine Des Moinesian Atokan n ia ipp Unc iss onfo Miss rmity Lineament Four Corners EXPLANATION Pennsylvanian- Coarse Arkose Red Siltstone Nequola-Abajo Arch Permian (Derived from Uncompahgre Uplift) Uncompahgre Uplift Limestone Dolomite Pennsylvanian Algal Bioherm Anhydrite Halite Precambrian Granite Figure 2. Northeast to southwest cross-section of the Paradox Basin (modified from Goldhammer and others, 1991). Paradox Formation Total Petroleum System fracture networks that are associated with salt structures. Traps are provided by salt anticlines, ridges and walls, and nonreser- The Paradox Formation TPS (fig. 1) is defined by hydro- voir quality units (intraformational and interformational) act as carbons sourced from Middle Pennsylvanian (Desmoinesian) seals. black dolomitic shales of the Paradox Formation that were Four unconventional AUs also were defined as part of the deposited in the subsiding basin (fig. 2). These shales are inter- Paradox Formation TPS (fig. 3b): (1) Cane Creek Shale Oil bedded with thick salt deposits. Petroleum from these source AU; (2) Cane Creek Shale Gas AU; (3) Gothic, Chimney Rock, rocks is present in three conventional AUs (fig. 3a): (1) Lead- Hovenweep Shale Oil AU; and( 4) Gothic, Chimney Rock, ville McCracken; (2) Pennsylvanian Carbonate Buildups and Hovenweep Shale Gas AU. Continuous reservoirs are defined Fractured Limestone, and (3) Upper Paleozoic – Mesozoic Res- as those with diffuse boundaries and lacking obvious traps and ervoirs. Conventional accumulations are defined as those that seals. Production from these reservoirs is typically enhanced have well-defined boundaries and hydrocarbon-water contacts, or controlled by fractures. The Cane Creek Shale Oil and Shale and tend to have adequate porosity and permeability. Gas AUs and the Gothic, Chimney Rock, Hovenweep Shale Oil The Leadville McCracken AU consists of Mississippian and Shale Gas AUs are differentiated by a maturation bound- limestones and Devonian sandstones that are interpreted to ary of vitrinite reflectance = 1.1 percent, with the more mature have undergone hydrothermal fluid flow since the Oligocene strata (gas) in the deeper part of the basin near the Uncompahgre (Chidsey and others, 2009), which created localized reservoir- uplift. quality porosity and permeability. Migration of hydrocarbons from the overlying Paradox Formation was along through-going Permo-Mississippian Total Petroleum System faults. The Pennsylvanian Carbonate Buildups and Fractured The Permo-Mississippian TPS (fig. 1) is defined by the Limestone AU consists of phylloid algal mounds that developed presence of oils from either the Permian Phosphoria Forma- along topographic highs on the shallow southwest flank of the tion or the Mississippian Delle Phosphatic Member of Chain- Paradox Basin, with micritic open-marine limestones deposited man Shale and equivalents, or both. Geochemical data support in the intervening lows and farther basinward. Phylloid algal the interpretation that the oils originated from the Phosphoria mounds possess excellent reservoir properties; furthermore, Formation, but do not exclude their origin from the Delle. The tectonic fracturing, produced from the movement of underly- Permian−Mesozoic Reservoirs AU (fig. 3a) includes many of ing salt, may have enhanced porosity and permeability in the the same clastic reservoirs as the Upper Paleozoic−Mesozoic micritic limestones. The source and reservoir facies are in close Reservoirs AU, but these reservoirs contain Permo-Mississip- stratigraphic juxtaposition, and short-distance lateral and verti- pian TPS hydrocarbons. The Manning Canyon Continuous Gas cal migration was along faults and fractures. Traps are mainly AU was not quantitatively assessed. stratigraphic, controlled by porosity and permeability trends in the algal mound facies and by fracturing due to salt move- Coalbed Gas Total Petroleum System ment. Seals are provided by overlying tight dolomite facies. The Upper Paleozoic−Mesozoic Reservoirs AU contains stacked The Coalbed Gas TPS is in the south-central part of Utah reservoirs of mixed continental, lacustrine, and fluvial clastic (fig. 1). The Kaiparowits Plateau AU (fig. 3b) was assessed for rocks of Late Pennsylvanian through Jurassic age. Hydrocar- coalbed methane from the Upper Cretaceous Straight Cliffs bons sourced from the Paradox Formation likely migrated Formation. The Henry Mountains Coalbed Gas AU was not into overlying reservoirs through vertical faults and extensive quantitatively assessed. 115°W 110°W 115°W 110°W A. IDAHO WYOMING B. IDAHO WYOMING UTAH UTAH Pennsylvanian Carbonate Buildups and Fractured COLORADO Limestone AU Gothic, Chimney Rock, COLORADO 40°N 40°N Hovenweep Shale Gas AU Cane Creek Shale Gas AU A’ A’ NEVADA NEVADA Leadville Cane Creek McCracken AU Shale Oil AU Coalbed Gas TPS and A Kaiparowits Plateau AU A Permian-Mesozoic Reservoirs AU Gothic, Chimney Rock, ARIZONA Upper Paleozoic- ARIZONA Hovenweep Shale Oil AU Mesozoic 35°N 0 100 200 MILES 35°N Reservoirs AU 0 100 200 MILES NEW MEXICO NEW MEXICO 0 100 200 KILOMETERS 0 100 200 KILOMETERS Figure 3a. Location of four conventional assessment units (AUs) Figure 3b. Location of five continuous assessment units (AUs) in the Paradox Basin. in the Paradox Basin. TPS, total petroleum system. Hypothetical Total Petroleum Systems References Cited Two TPSs were recognized in the Paradox Basin that do Barbeau, D.L., 2003, A flexural model for the Paradox Basin― not have any known resources and could not be quantitatively Implications for the tectonics of the Ancestral Rocky Moun- assessed. The Precambrian Chuar Group contains shales with tains: Basin Research, v. 15, p. 97−115. up to 10 percent total organic carbon that could have generated technically recoverable hydrocarbons within the Precambrian Chidsey, T.C., Jr., Morgan, C.D., Eby, D.E., Moore, J.N., Taylor, Chuar Self-Sourced Reservoirs AU. The Devonian Aneth L.H., and Humphrey, J.D., 2009, Diagenetic analysis of Formation is described as having black shale intervals and the Leadville Limestone, Lisbon case-study field,in Chidsey, because the Devonian is one of the major source rock intervals T. C., Jr., ed., The Mississippian Leadville Limestone explo- worldwide (Klemme and Ulmishek, 1991), the formation is ration play, Utah and Colorado―Exploration techniques recognized as having some potential for technically recoverable and studies for independents: Final Report for DOE Award, hydrocarbons within the Devonian Self-Sourced Reservoirs AU. no. DE-FC26-03NT15424, p. 4-1–4-20. Gautier, D.L., Dolton, G.L., Takahashi, K.I., and Varnes, K.L., Resource Summary 1996, 1995 National assessment of United States oil and gas The USGS assessed undiscovered, technically recoverable resources―Results, methodology, and supporting
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