Expression of the Colorado Mineral Belt in Upper Cretaceous Niobrara Formation Source Rock Maturity Data from the Denver Basin

Abstract

New source rock maturity data along the Colorado Mineral Belt trend in the Denver Basin reveal that source rocks in the deepest portion of the basin range from the onset of oil generation to wet gas maturity across a distance of less than 30 miles along present day structure. Additionally, sampled rock core and cuttings along a northeast-southwest transect reveal that the Niobrara Formation is within the oil maturity window all the way to the Nebraska-Colorado border. The correlation of these analyses to an identified thermal anomaly demonstrate that maturity along these trends is affected by a historical increase in heat flow that can still be seen in the present-day bottom-hole temperatures. The identified maturity anomaly has significant implications for Niobrara prospectivity within the basin. Crossplotting, mapping, and numerical modeling show the onset of hydrocarbon maturity in the Niobrara is represented by 432 °C Tmax and that hydrocarbon expulsion occurs between 438 °C and 443 °C Tmax. In the Niobrara Formation of the Denver Basin there is a strong correlation between oil and gas shows, elevated bottom-hole temperatures (and thermal gradients), and geochemical maturity parameters. Through mapping of maturity and free hydrocarbon anomalies, more than 80% of the present day production can be predicted with source rock mapping.