Abstract
The Agri Valley (Basilicata Region) is the most important area in Europe for onshore oil production. Moreover, the High Agri Valley extensional basin is among the Italian regions with the highest seismogenic potential. Therefore, the area is well investigated but even if deep data are available, the geometry of the pre-quaternary bedrock, the location of the main fault systems bordering the basin and the recent tectonic evolution of the basin are still debated. The aim of this work is to define the morphology of the pre-quaternary substrate below the valley, the thickness of the quaternary alluvial deposits and to contribute to the knowledge of the geological-structural characteristics of the basin of the High Agri Valley, by a new multichannel deep electrical resistivity tomography (DERT) data. The valley was previously characterized by DERT measurements crossing the valley, and now we present a new deep longitudinal acquisition. The new high-resolution electrical images allow us to improve previous reconstruction of the complex geometry of the basin and to highlight the irregular shape of the basin, bordered by shallow-depth faults and filled by Pleistocene alluvial deposits, with a more detailed scenario of fault-bounded blocks forming different depocentres separated by intrabasinal highs.
Highlights
The Agri Valley is the most important area in Europe for onshore oil production, where 27 wells in production in the Val d’Agri are connected by 100 km of underground pipelines (Centro Oli Val D’Agri-COVA network) and from there directly to the Taranto refinery
The aim of this work is to define the morphology of the pre-quaternary substrate below the valley, the thickness of the quaternary alluvial deposits and to contribute to the knowledge of the geological-structural characteristics of the basin of the High Agri Valley, by a new multichannel deep electrical resistivity tomography (DERT) data
The valley was previously characterized by DERT measurements crossing the valley, and we present a new deep longitudinal acquisition
Summary
The Agri Valley is the most important area in Europe for onshore oil production, where 27 wells in production in the Val d’Agri are connected by 100 km of underground pipelines (Centro Oli Val D’Agri-COVA network) and from there directly to the Taranto refinery. The hydrocarbon occurrences of Italy tend to be identified in three different groups (Bertello et al 2008) One of these is the Cretaceous petroleum system (Val d’Agri Field). The basin represents an active neotectonic area and one of the higher seismic and environmental hazard sectors of Southern Apennines. It was affected by recurrent and destructive earthquakes such as the 1857 Basilicata earthquake (Gasperini et al 1999; Burrato and Valensise 2008), as well as it is one of the most important areas for hydrocarbon extraction in Europe. The area was characterized by the development of important historical settlements in the past and by dense urbanization in recent times
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