Prospectivity of the 2014 offshore acreage release areas for petroleum exploration
Thomas Bernecker A , Dianne Edwards A , Tehani Kuske A , Bridgette Lewis A and Tegan Smith AGeoscience Australia
The APPEA Journal 54(1) 383-414 https://doi.org/10.1071/AJ13040
Published: 2014
Abstract
The Australian Government formally releases new offshore exploration areas at the annual APPEA conference. Industry nominations provided guidance for the selection of gazettal areas, and in 2014 all 30 areas are supported by such nominations. The release areas are located across various offshore hydrocarbon provinces ranging from mature basins with ongoing oil and gas production to exploration frontiers. Work program bids are invited for two rounds closing on 2 October 2014 and 2 April 2015, while the closing date for four cash bid areas is 5 February 2015.
Twenty-nine of the 2014 Release Areas are located along Australia’s northern margin within the Westralian Superbasin, which encompasses the rift-basins that extend from the Northern Carnarvon Basin to the Bonaparte Basin. Evolution during Gondwana break-up established a series of petroleum systems, many of which have been successfully explored, while others remain untapped.
Only one area was nominated and approved for release on Australia’s southern margin. The 220 graticular blocks cover almost the entire Eyre Sub-basin of the Bight Basin. In the context of the recent commencement of large-scale exploration programs in the Ceduna and Duntroon sub-basins, this release area provides additional opportunities to explore an offshore frontier.
Geoscience Australia’s new long-term petroleum program supports industry activities by engaging in petroleum geological studies that are aimed at the establishment of margin to basin-scale structural frameworks and comprehensive assessments of Australian source rocks underpinning all hydrocarbon prospectivity studies.
Thomas Bernecker is a sedimentologist/petroleum geologist who holds a MSc degree from the University of Aachen, Germany, and a PhD from Melbourne’s La Trobe University. After teaching undergraduate courses at the University of Melbourne, Thomas spent 10 years with the Victorian Department of Primary Industries, focusing on the petroleum geology and the hydrocarbon prospectivity of the Gippsland and Otway basins. Thomas joined Geoscience Australia in 2007, where he presently manages the Offshore Petroleum Acreage Release and Promotion project. Member: PESA, SEPM, and IAS. Tom.Bernecker@ga.gov.au |
Dianne Edwards is a senior petroleum geochemist at Geoscience Australia and is presently involved with the Offshore Acreage Release and Promotion Section. She is also undertaking organic geochemical studies on unconventional petroleum (shale gas and tight gas) as part of the Onshore Hydrocarbons project, and hydrocarbon migration studies in the Gippsland Basin as a member of the CCS Gippsland Project. Dianne has extensive experience on the petroleum systems of the North West Shelf and Canning and Otway basins. She received her BSc Hons. degree in geology and MSc in organic petrology and organic geochemistry from the University of Newcastle-upon-Tyne, UK. Dianne was awarded her PhD from the University of Adelaide. Dianne.Edwards@ga.gov.au |
Tehani Kuske gained her master’s degree from the University of Waikato in New Zealand in 2009 in the field of micrometeorology. In 2009 Tehani accepted a position with Geoscience Australia and has since been involved with various projects including greenhouse gas monitoring and petroleum acreage products during the past 5 years. Some of these projects included the mapping of groundwater chemistry for significant Australian basins, deploying a baseline atmospheric monitoring station in a high potential CCS area in Queensland, and more recently being involved with the petroleum acreage products that are developed in collaboration with the Department of Industry for offshore petroleum basins. Tehani.Kuske@ga.gov.au |
Bridgette Lewis is a sedimentologist with the Basin Resources Group at Geoscience Australia. In 2008 Bridgette joined Geoscience Australia and has since been involved in several projects including sedimentary hosted mineral systems, the international Mining for Development program, and offshore petroleum acreage release projects. Bridgette gained a BSc/BA in geology and psychology, followed by a MSc in sedimentology and geochemistry from the University of Otago in New Zealand. Bridgette is a committee member of PESA-ACT. Bridgette.Lewis@ga.gov.au |
Tegan E. Smith is a stratigrapher with the Basin Resources Group at Geoscience Australia. She completed a BSc at the University of Tasmania with a double major in Earth Science and Zoology, then joined The Australian National University (ANU) for her honours year. In 2007, she undertook a PhD at the ANU then joined Geoscience Australia in 2011. She started her present position with the Basin Resources Group in early 2012. Member: PESA and the PESA-ACT committee. Tegan.Smith@ga.gov.au |
