Formation and accumulation of oil and gas in marine carbonate sequences in Chinese sedimentary basins

Advances in studies of formation and accumulation mechanisms of oil and gas in marine carbonate sequences have led to continuing breakthroughs of petroleum exploration in marine carbonate sequences in Chinese sedimentary basins in recent years. The recently discovered giant Tahe Oil Field and Puguang Gas Field have provided geological entities for further studies of the formation and accumulation of oil and gas in marine carbonate sequences. Marine carbonate sequences in China are characterized by old age, multiple structural deformation, differential thermal evolution of source rocks, various reservoir types (i.e. reef-bank complex and paleo-weathered crust karst reservoir), uneven development of caprocks, especially gypsum seal, and multi-episodes of hydrocarbon accumulation and readjustment. As a result, the formation of hydrocarbon accumulations in the Chinese marine carbonate sequences has the following features: (i) the high-quality marine source rocks of shale and calcareous mudstone are often associated with siliceous rocks or calcareous rocks and were deposited in slope environments. They are rich in organic matter, have a higher hydrocarbon generation potential, but experienced variable thermal evolutions in different basins or different areas of the same basin. (ii) High quality reservoirs are controlled by both primary depositional environments and later modifications including diagenetic modifications, structural deformations, and fluid effects. (iii) Development of high-quality caprocks, especially gypsum seals, is the key to the formation of large- and medium-sized oil and gas fields in marine carbonate sequences. Gypsum often constitutes the caprock for most of large sized gas fields. Given that Chinese marine carbonate sequences are of old age and subject to multiple episodes of structural deformation and superposition, oil and gas tend to accumulate in the slopes and structural hinge zones, since the slopes favor the development of effective assemblage of source-reservoir-caprock, high quality source rocks, good reservoirs such as reef-bank complex, and various caprocks. As the structural hinge zones lay in the focus area of petroleum migration and experienced little structural deformation, they are also favorable places for hydrocarbon accumulation and preservation.