Identifying overlooked exploration opportunities from bypassed pay analysis Emphasis on the hydrocarbon prospectivity of the Brabant Formation (Bathonian – Oxfordian) in the Roer Valley Graben and West Netherlands Basin M. C. Bussmann Faculty of Geosciences, Department of Earth Sciences, Utrecht University, The Netherlands Supervision: Prof. Dhr. J. De Jager (UU) J. Lutgert (EBN) MSc Thesis July 2014 Table of Contents CHAPTER 1 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ...................................................................................................... 3 CHAPTER 2 INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................................... 4 CHAPTER 3 GEOLOGICAL FRAMEWORK OF THE STUDY AREA .................................................... 6 3.1 STRUCTURAL ELEMENTS ............................................................................................................................... 6 3.2 GEOLOGICAL HISTORY .................................................................................................................................. 7 CHAPTER 4 WORKFLOW .......................................................................................................................... 9 4.1 DATA INPUT .................................................................................................................................................. 9 4.2 METHODOLOGY NUTECH ANALYSIS ........................................................................................................... 10 4.3 METHODOLOGY BRABANT FORMATION STUDY .......................................................................................... 10 CHAPTER 5 NUTECH ANALYSIS ............................................................................................................ 12 5.1 NUTECH’S INTERPRETATION WORKFLOW .................................................................................................... 12 5.2 RESULTS OF NUTECH’S MODELING ............................................................................................................. 12 5.3 OVERLOOKED EXPLORATION OPPORTUNITIES ............................................................................................. 13 5.3.1 Chalk Group ....................................................................................................................................... 15 5.3.2 Holland Greensand Member ............................................................................................................... 16 5.3.3 Delfland subgroup .............................................................................................................................. 17 5.3.4 Brabant Formation ............................................................................................................................. 18 5.3.5 Lower Muschelkalk ............................................................................................................................. 20 5.3.6 Zechstein Fringe Sandstone Members ................................................................................................ 21 5.3.7 Zechstein 1 Fringe Carbonate Member .............................................................................................. 22 5.3.8 Westphalian C/D ................................................................................................................................. 23 CHAPTER 6 GEOLOGICAL SETTING OF THE BRABANT FORMATION ........................................ 24 6.1 GEOLOGICAL HISTORY ROER VALLEY GRABEN .......................................................................................... 27 6.2 STRATIGRAPHY ........................................................................................................................................... 30 CHAPTER 7 OBSERVATIONS AND INTERPRETATIONS ................................................................... 33 7.1 SEISMIC SCALE ............................................................................................................................................ 33 7.2 WELL LOG SCALE ........................................................................................................................................ 36 7.3 CORE SCALE ................................................................................................................................................ 41 CHAPTER 8 ANALOGUE FORMATIONS ............................................................................................... 47 8.1 WEALD BASIN CARBONATE RAMP ............................................................................................................... 47 8.2 PARIS BASIN CARBONATE RAMP.................................................................................................................. 47 8.3 SOLE PIT BASIN ........................................................................................................................................... 48 8.4 MUSCHELKALK ........................................................................................................................................... 48 8.5 CONCLUSIONS ............................................................................................................................................. 49 CHAPTER 9 FACIES INTERPRETATION ............................................................................................... 50 9.1 CORE – LOG CALIBRATION .......................................................................................................................... 50 9.2 FACIES DISTRIBUTION MAPS ........................................................................................................................ 50 9.3 SWEETSPOTS ............................................................................................................................................... 52 CHAPTER 10 CONCEPTUAL GEOLOGICAL MODEL ......................................................................... 53 10.1 DEPOSITIONAL SETTING ............................................................................................................................ 53 1 10.2 TECTONIC SETTING .................................................................................................................................... 55 10.3 CLIMATIC SETTING .................................................................................................................................... 55 10.4 DIAGENETIC SETTING ................................................................................................................................ 55 CHAPTER 11 RESERVOIR PROPERTIES .............................................................................................. 58 11.1 CORE PLUG BASED PROPERTIES ................................................................................................................. 58 11.2 WELL LOG BASED PROPERTIES (NUTECH) ................................................................................................. 58 CHAPTER 12 PROSPECTIVITY & TRAP CONCEPTS .......................................................................... 62 12.1 TRAP CONCEPT I: SUB-UNCONFORMITY TRAPS .......................................................................................... 64 12.2 TRAP CONCEPT II: DOWNFAULTED TRAPS .................................................................................................. 66 12.3 ADDITIONAL PROSPECTIVITY .................................................................................................................... 70 CHAPTER 13 DISCUSSION ....................................................................................................................... 71 13.1 REFLECTION ON NUTECH’S MODELING ..................................................................................................... 71 13.2 CONCEPTUAL GEOLOGICAL MODEL AND MODELING RESULTS ................................................................... 71 13.3 GEOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENT OF THE BRABANT FORMATION .................................................................... 72 13.4 FACTORS INFLUENCING RESERVOIR QUALITY ............................................................................................ 73 CHAPTER 14 CONCLUSIONS .................................................................................................................. 74 CHAPTER 15 RECOMMENDATIONS ..................................................................................................... 75 CHAPTER 16 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ................................................................................................. 76 CHAPTER 17 REFERENCES ..................................................................................................................... 77 CHAPTER 18 APPENDICES ...................................................................................................................... 80 Appendix 1 - Lutgert et al. (2013) study results ........................................................................................... 81 Appendix 2 - Hydrocarbon shows database for overlooked opportunities .................................................. 82 Appendix 3 - Hydrocarbon shows database + descriptions for the Brabant Formation ............................. 88 Appendix 4 - Facies descriptions and depositional environments for the Brabant Formation .................... 90 Appendix 5 - Facies distribution map Lower Brabant Limestone ...............................................................