Underexplored but not forgotten: assessing the energy resources potential of the greater Pedirka Basin region through play-based mapping
Jeremy Iwanec A * , Paul Strong B and Tom Bernecker AA Geoscience Australia, Canberra, ACT, Australia.
B South Australian Department for Energy and Mining, Adelaide, SA, Australia.
The APPEA Journal 63 S251-S256 https://doi.org/10.1071/AJ22150
Accepted: 24 February 2023 Published: 11 May 2023
© 2023 The Author(s) (or their employer(s)). Published by CSIRO Publishing on behalf of APPEA. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY).
Abstract
The Pedirka, Simpson and western Eromanga basins in central Australia have had a chequered exploration history which has seen only 42 wells drilled across a study area of ~210 000 km2. Exploration initially focused on conventional hydrocarbons from the 1950s–1980s, before shifting towards coal seam gas (CSG) opportunities in the mid-2000s. Active petroleum systems have been proven in the region by a non-commercial oil discovery at Poolowanna 1 in 1977, and by several wells that showed evidence of residual oil columns. CSG exploration programs have confirmed the presence of thick, marginally mature coal intervals on the flanks of the basins, but are yet to evaluate the CSG potential of the deeper troughs. Geoscience Australia, the Northern Territory Geological Survey and the South Australian Department for Energy and Mining have been collaborating on the Australia’s Future Energy Resources project to undertake an assessment of the resource potential for conventional and unconventional hydrocarbons, and the geological storage of CO2 (GSC) potential of the greater Pedirka region. The project has applied a play-based exploration approach to qualitatively assess the resource potential of the region. The Carboniferous to Cretaceous stratigraphic interval was divided into 14 plays which were evaluated for the presence of sediment-hosted energy resources through post-drill analysis, gross depositional environment mapping and common risk segment mapping. The analysis identified energy resources and GSC potential across multiple plays and locations within the study area. These results demonstrate, that while the region is underexplored, it should not be overlooked by future exploration activities.
Keywords: conventional hydrocarbons, geological storage of CO2, Pedirka Basin, play-based exploration, prospectivity, Simpson Basin, unconventional hydrocarbons, western Eromanga Basin.
Jeremy Iwanec is a Geoscientist with 20 years of petroleum industry experience. Jeremy completed a BSc (Honours) in Applied Geology from the University of New South Wales in 2002, before joining Oil Search Limited in 2003. At Oil Search, he worked on various projects across Papua New Guinea, Yemen and Kurdistan, undertaking play-based exploration studies, 2D and 3D seismic interpretation, structural and stratigraphic modelling, well planning and delivery, and resource assessments. In 2021, Jeremy joined Geoscience Australia as an Energy Resources Geoscientist where he is currently conducting studies of sediment-hosted energy resources. |
Paul Strong is a Geoscientist with over 35 years of oil and gas industry experience. He is Chief Petroleum Geologist at the SA Department for Energy and Mining, after holding a range of senior technical and managerial positions with Santos Limited for nearly 23 years. His experience includes play-based exploration, prospect generation, drilling operations, reserve/resource estimation and full-cycle economics. Paul holds a BSc (Hons) in Geology from the University of Durham (UK) and an MSc in Petroleum Exploration Studies from the University of Aberdeen (UK). |
Dr Thomas (Tom) Bernecker is a Geoscientist who holds a MSc from the University of Aachen (RWTH), Germany and a PhD from Melbourne’s La Trobe University. His research work focused on the development of models for siliciclastic and carbonate depositional systems in NW Europe and in Australia. After a lectureship at the University of Melbourne, Tom joined the Victorian Department of Natural Resources and Energy where his work was focussed on the hydrocarbon prospectivity of the Gippsland and Otway basins. Tom joined Geoscience Australia in 2007 and is currently the Director of Energy Resources Advice and Promotion. |
References
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| A regional chronostratigraphic framework for play-based resource assessments in the Eromanga Basin.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
