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GEOExProTheSubmergedContinentofNewZealand

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TheSubmergedContinentofNewZealand
ChrisUruski,MikeIsaac,RayWoodandPeterKing,GNSScience
Aretherecontinent-scaleresourcestobefoundoffshore?
ThisarticleappearedinVol.8,No.22011

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ViewsouthalongthenorthTaranakicoastinthevicinity
ofTongaporuturivermouth,showingmagnificently
exposeddeep-watersand-richstrataoftheMount
MessengerFormation,laterallyequivalentdepositsto
producingpetroleumreservoirsinsubsurfaceTaranaki
Peninsula.Source:LloydHomer/GNSScience

NewZealandhasproducedpetroleumfornearly100yearssinceoilfirstflowedfromtheMoturoafieldinTaranakiBasin.Discoveryofthe
Kapunigasfieldin1959,thegiantMauigasfieldin1969andtheMcKeeoilfieldin1979cementedTaranakiasthefocusofexploration.The
discoveryanddevelopmentofthePohokuraandKupegasfieldsandtheTuiandMaarioilfieldsfollowedwithinthelastdecade.Atotalof
around2BboehasbeendiscoveredinTaranaki,andpetroleumisNewZealandsfourthhighestexportearner.
Productionissofarlimitedtoonlyasmallfractionofthe1.5millionsquarekilometresofsedimentarybasinsthatunderlieNewZealands
territory.OilandgasexplorationofonshoreandnearshoreareasawayfromTaranakihasbeensporadic,butatleastthreebasins,theEast
Coast,CanterburyandGreatSouth,havebeenshowntocontaineffectivepetroleumsystems.
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RisesinthepriceofoilandthegrowingawarenessoftheextentofsedimentarybasinswithinNewZealand'sterritoryhaveincreased
industryinterestinfrontierareas,allofwhicharerelativelyunexploredandinmanycasesundrilled.Attentionisnowbeingpaidto
deepwaterTaranaki,offshoreCanterbury,GreatSouthBasin,onshoreeastcoastoftheNorthIsland,andtheRaukumaraBasin.Atleast
someofthisactivityistheresultofreconnaissanceseismicsurveysinfivefrontierbasinsconductedbytheCrownMineralsdivisionof
theMinistryofEconomicDevelopment.

Taranaki Basin: Where It All Began

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NeogeneanticlinesintheEastCoastBasinareboundedtothesouth-eastbythrustfaults
andimpoundpiggy-backbasinswithturbiditebasin-fill.Amplitudeanomaliesatthemargins
suggestgasmigrationandleakage.Source:GNSScience

TheislandsofNewZealandarethe
emergentpartsofanextensive,mainly
submergedcontinentallandmass;New
Zealandterritorycoversalmost6million
km2,20%ofitunderlainbysedimentary
basins.Source:GNSScience

Morethan400wellshavebeendrilledintheonshoreandshelfpartsoftheTaranakiBasin,coveringabout100,000km2ofthewestern
NorthIslandandadjacentareaoffshore.TaranakiinitiallyformedasanEarlyCretaceoustoPaleogeneintraplateriftbasin,during
fragmentationoftheGondwanacontinentalmargin.ThebasinwasstructurallyoverprintedintheNeogeneasaresultofthedevelopment
ofthemodernconvergentplateboundarythroughNewZealand.Somedepocentrescontainmorethan9,000mofbasinfill.Exploration
targetsincludestructuresandstratigraphictrapsformedbyrift-relatedprocessesandcompressionalinversionstructures.Sourcerocks
knowntohavegeneratedhydrocarbonsincommercialquantitiesaremainlyLateCretaceousandPaleogenecoal-bearingrocksand
marineshalesbut,intwoareas,geochemistryindicatesamidCretaceousoroldersource.ProvenreservoirsincludePaleoceneandEocene
terrestrial,paralicandnear-shoresandstones,LateEocenetoPlioceneturbidites,fracturedOligocenelimestone,Miocenevolcaniclastics,
andPlioceneshelfsands.
Inglobalterms,thebasinisconsideredafar-from-matureprovince.TherecentdiscoveryofthelargePohukuragasfield(2000),the
discoveryofoilinanewplayinTui(2003),withaworldrecordproductionpaybacktimeofonly3months,andthelikelyupgradingofthe
sizeofthegasresourceatMangahewa,arejustafewoftheindicationsthatthebasinmayyetholdsurprises.Someofthecurrent
challengesandopportunitiesforexplorationincludeevaluationofreservoirqualityfortightgasplays,improvementofseismicimagingin
areascoveredbyvolcaniclastics,unravellingmigrationpathwaysfrompetroleumkitchens,andexplorationofCretaceousdeepreservoir
potential.
TheEastCoastBasincoversabout130,000km2oftheeastcoastofNorthIslandandtheadjacentHikurangimargin.Over300oilandgas
seeps,bothonshoreandoffshore,havespurredexplorationinterestsincethelatenineteenthcentury.Morethan40wellshavebeendrilled
onshore,includingasub-commercialdrygasdiscovery.Onlythreewellshavebeendrilledintheextensiveoffshoreregionandallhad
goodgasshows.Theoilandgasseepsaretestimonytotheareassourceandmigrationpotential;thechallengeistofindgoodquality
reservoirs.
Mostwellshavetargetedcompressionalanticlinaltrapsformedinboardofthemodernplatemargin.Recentresearchsuggeststhat
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explorationmayhavetobeturnedonitshead;itappearsthatturbiditesandsarelikelytobebetterdevelopedalongsynclinalaxesthan
acrossanticlinalcrests.En-echelonlarge-scalethrustridgesformedbysyn-depositionaltectonicsalongtheNeogeneconvergentmargin
areinferredtohaveformedbarrierstodown-slopesedimenttransport,withinterveningpiggy-backbasinsinsteadactingasconduitsfor
coarse-grainedturbiditeflows.Goodqualityreservoirsmaybepreferentiallydevelopedinsynclines,andtrapsmaybedevelopedeither
stratigraphicallybylateralfacieschangeorstructurallybybasininversion.Seismicamplitudeanomaliesandinterpretedgaschimneys
ontheflanksofthesebasinssupporttheirconsiderationasexplorationtargets.
ThisplaywasunknowinglyexploredbythehistoricWaingaromia-1well,spuddedin1884.Rainpreventedtransportoftherigtothe
planneddrillsiteontopofahillnearanoilseep.Theholewasdrilledinthevalleyinsteadandfoundoilatabout300m.Thewellproduced
20to50bopduntilassociatedgascaughtfireanddestroyedtherig.ModernworkhasshownthatWaingaromia-1wasdrilledintoa
stratigraphictrapwithinasyncline.

Raukumara and Pegasus Basins

Thelittle-knownPegasusBasindueeastofWellingtonwasmappedforthefirsttimein2010.
Seismicsurveysshowdirecthydrocarbonindicatorsassociatedwithlarge,gentlefolds;in
placesabottom-simulatingreflectorinferredtorepresentgashydratesformsaseal.
Source:GNSScience

Thick,little-deformedCretaceousandPaleogenerocksoftheRaukumaraBasinwere
depositedinapassivemarginsetting.EarlyMioceneconvergenceresultedinemplacement
ofthrustsheets,yettheoverallstructureofthebasinremainsremarkablysimple.
Source:GNSScience

ThedeepwaterRaukumaraBasinliesnorthoftheEastCoastBasinandwestofdeformedrocksassociatedwiththemodernplate
boundary.PegasusBasin,northoftheChathamRiseandeastoftheEastCoastBasin,liesentirelyonthePacificplate.Neitherbasinhas
beengreatlyaffectedbyNeogenetectonicsalongtheplateboundary.Theyhavenotseenanydrillingactivity,butseismicamplitude
anomaliesarestrongindicatorsthatbothbasinshaveactivepetroleumsystems.
RaukumaraBasininitiallyformedasapassivesedimentarywedgeacrossthefossilGondwanasubductionmargin.IntheEarlyMiocene
itseasternmarginwasuplifted,foldingthebasinintoalargesyncline.In-placeCretaceousandPaleogenerocksareoverlainbythrust
sheetsemplacedintheEarlyMiocene.YoungerNeogeneturbiditesuccessionsflowedalongtheaxisofthisbasin.CrownMinerals
collectedseismicdataacrossmuchofthebasinin2007andin2010Petrobraswasawardedanexplorationpermitoveranareaof
12,330km2.
Recently,thefirstreconnaissance2DseismicsurveyacrossthePegasusBasinrevealedmorethan10,000mofsedimentaryfill,withmore
than6,000mdepositedintheNeogene.ThisbasinoriginatedalongtheGondwanasubductionmarginandcontainsafossilised
subductionsystemseparatedby100kmand100millionyearsfromthepresent-daysubductionmargin.Largestructureshavebeen
mappedandtherearedirecthydrocarbonindicatorsthroughoutthebasin.

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Canterbury Basin: Taranakis Twin?

TheCarrackandCaravelprospectsoftheCanterburyBasincompriseLateCretaceoussands
drapedoverstructuralhighs,withmature,olderCretaceoussourcerockspresentinan
adjacentkitchenarea.Source:GNSScience

CanterburyBasincoversatleast360,000km2eastoftheSouthIsland,extendingfromthefoothillsoftheSouthernAlpstotheBounty
Troughoffshore.Eightonshoreandfiveoffshorewellshavebeendrilled.Galleon-1,asub-commercialgasdiscovery,produced10MMcfgpd
and2,300cfpdofcondensate,whileCutter-1discovereda56mgrosshydrocarboncolumninpoorqualitysandstones.Severalcompanies
haveinterestsinexplorationpermits,includingAnadarko,OriginEnergy,AWEandNZOG.
LateCretaceousandPaleogenegeologyandtectonichistoryaresimilartothoseofTaranakiBasin.CanterburyBasinhasupto6,000mof
CretaceoustoRecentbasin-fill,thickestinCretaceousriftbasins.ThemostwidespreadsourcerocksareLateCretaceoustoPaleocene
alluvialtocoastalplaincoalyrocks,butbiomarkerandisotopegeochemistryofoilshowsfromthewellsindicatethatmid-Cretaceous
paraliccoalyrocksinsyn-riftdepocentresmaybemostpetroleum-generative.Themostpromisingreservoirrocksareterrestrial
sandstonesoftheCretaceoussyn-riftsuccession,andLateCretaceoustoMiocenefluvial,estuarine,shallowmarineanddeep-water
sandstonesandlimestones.
Inthedeepercontinentalslopewaters,AnadarkoandOriginhavecommittedtodrillthegiantCarrack-Caravelprospect.Theprospectlies
withinthepetroleumkitchenthatsourcedtheGalleondiscovery.Atbasementlevel,CarrackandCaravelaretwoseparateculminationson
alargeclosure;Caraveltothenorthencloses58-78km2attopCretaceouslevel,andCarrackencloses200-220km2.Bothstructures
exhibitstrongAVOanomalies.
Extensivefieldsofpockmarksattheheadofthedeep-waterBountyTrough,asseenontheseaflooronswathbathymetryandwithin
shallowsedimenthorizonson3Dseismicdata,couldindicateanunderlyingactivepetroleumsystem.

Great South Basin

GreatSouthBasinsyn-riftandpost-riftsedimentsaredrapedoverstructuralhighs,some
formedofopenfoldedTriassic-Jurassicmarineandnon-marinesandstonesandmudstones.
Source:GNSScience

TheGreatSouthBasinisalargeCretaceous,andpossiblyolder,riftbasintothesouthoftheCanterburyBasin.Itliesalmostentirely
offshoreinwaterdepthsaveraging750m.ItwasfirstexploredbyHuntInternationalPetroleumCompany,andeightwellsweredrilledfrom
1974to1984.Fourhadoilandgasshowsandone,Kawau-1A,wasasub-commercialgas-condensatediscoverywithanestimated461Bcfg.
Sourcerocksarecoal-bearingCretaceousunits,withsignificantoilpotential.TheKawaureservoirisLateCretaceoustransgressive
sandstoneandrecentworksuggeststhatLateCretaceousandPaleogeneturbiditessandsmayalsobepresent.
OMV,PTTEPandMitsuiarepartnersinthreepermits,andGreymouthPetroleumhasanother.TheOMVjointventureacquiredmorethan
20,000kmof2Dseismicdataandreprocessedolderdata.ExxonMobilhasrecentlyrelinquishedacreageinthebasin,afterevidently
targetingaspecificplaytype,butleavesalegacyofnewly-acquiredhigh-qualityseismic2Dand3Ddatathatisnowopenfile.
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Numerouslargeprospectsarepresentinthebasin.TheGreymouthpermitliesacrossthebasinmarginwhereplaysmayincludepinchouttraps.

Deepwater Taranaki Stepping Out

MountTaranaki,adormantandesitevolcano2,518mhigh,towersovertheTaranaki
peninsula,hometoNewZealand'sproducingoilandgasfields,someofwhichliebetweenthe
volcanoandthecoastlineseeninthedistance.Photo:LloydHomer,GNSScience

IneasternTaranakiBasinclosetotheshelfedge,wellshaveshownbasementtobeoverlain
byLateCretaceouscoalmeasures.Inthedeepwaterprovince,however,thecoalmeasuresare
underlainbyathickdeltaicunitofolderbasin-fillrocks.Source:GNSScience

North-westoftheTaranakishelfedgeisthedeepwaterextensionofthebasin.Anadarko,HyundaiHYSCO,AWE,GlobalResourceHoldings
andRCTholdapermitover32,830km2ofthebasin.
TherehasbeennodrillinginthedeepwaterTaranakiBasinbutseismiclinetiestowellsneartheshelfedgeallowextrapolationoftheLate
CretaceoustoNeogenestratigraphyintothebasin.Inthedeepwaterprovinceanadditional,extensive,thickdeltaicsuccessionis
interpretedtounderlieLateCretaceouscoalmeasuresdrilledclosertoshore.ThedeltaoverliesariftbasininterpretedtobeJurassicand
EarlyCretaceousinage.North-westtrendingMesozoicriftstructuresandorthogonalCretaceousandPaleogeneriftsassociatedwith
fragmentationofGondwanaformlargebasementhighs,acrosswhichreservoirfaciesaredraped.PotentialreservoirsareofCretaceousto
Neogeneage,withMiocenechannelsandturbiditesparticularlyattractive.Someoftheplaytypesarecorrelativesoffairwaysinthe
nearshorepartofthebasin,butothersareuniquetothedeepwaterprovince.
TheLateCretaceouscoal-bearingunitsthatarepresentacrossthetopofthedeepwaterdeltasourcedtheoilandgasintheTui,Maui,and
Maarifields.Thepresent-dayoilexpulsionwindowismodelledtoincludethebaseofthecoalyfaciesandmuchoftheunderlyingdelta.
Beyondthedeltafrontthesuccessionmayincludepro-deltaturbiditesthatcouldhavecarriedkerogenintodeepwater,similartothe
KuteiandSabahbasinsofIndonesiawherehydrodynamicsortingaidedpreferentialtransportanddepositionofoil-proneleafykerogen.
Seismicamplitudeanomaliesarestrongindicatorsofanactivepetroleumsystem.

More Than Taranaki

NewZealandsterritorycoversalmost6millionkm2,includingabout1.5millionkm2ofprospectivesedimentarybasins.Taranakiremains
thereferencepointforexploration,asitisthebestknownbasin,butevenithasprovedtoholdsurprises.
ManybasinsoriginatedalongtheactiveMesozoicGondwanamargin.Insomeareas,JurassicMurihikurocks,formerlyconsideredas
basement,maybepartofthebasinfillandhavesourcepotential.Riftbasinsformedthroughoutmuchoftheregionduringthebreakupof
GondwanaintheCretaceous.Afteralongperioddominatedbyintraplateriftingandsubsidenceinapassivemarginsetting,initiationof
themodernplateboundarythroughNewZealandbeganinthemidEocene.NorthWestNewZealandwasaffectedbyamajor
compressionaleventinlatePaleogenetime,whileinthesouththerewasrifting.MajorOligocenecrustaldownwarpsarealsorecorded.The
modernplateboundarypropagatedthroughtheregioninEarlyMiocenetime.
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Developmentofaregionaltectonicandpaleogeographicframeworkallowsextrapolationofbasinarchitectureandinferenceofpetroleum
systemsdevelopmentbeyondTaranaki.ResearchonTaranakireservoirsprovidesinsightsintothecontrolsonreservoirdistributionand
secondaryprocessesaffectingporosityandpermeability,withimplicationsforsimilardepositionalsystemsinotherbasins.Structural
andplatemotionhistorygiveinsightsonsourcerockdistribution,reservoirprovenance,burialhistory,regionalheatflow,andthetiming
ofhydrocarbongenerationandstructuraltrapformation.
WidespreadunderstandingthatNewZealandisasubmergedcontinentwithvastsedimentarybasinshasbeenalongtimecoming,but
willundoubtedlyshapethinkingaboutthecountryspetroleumprospectivityinthefuture.Giventhenature,extentandgeologicalhistory
ofthebasins,itisunlikelythattheonlycommercialaccumulationsofoilandgasinNewZealandareinnearshoreandonshoreTaranaki.
ExplorationeffortsinNewZealandsfrontierbasinsmayberewardedbydiscoveriesofsignificantpetroleumresources.

GNSScienceisNewZealand'spremierproviderofnaturalresourcesresearchandconsultancyservices.Open-filedataandreportsareavailableontheCrownMinerals
website:(http://www.crownminerals.govt.nz/cms/petroleum/technical-data).

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