Abstract
The fracture-bound deposit at the Sieringhoek (Bentheim) bitumen mine in NW Germany has yielded a substantial quantity of bitumen ore. Emplacement of the bitumen into the fracture system occurred under high pressure, causing brecciation and impregnation of the host Gildehaus Sandstone. Subsequently the bitumen was brecciated and cemented by calcite and calcite-entrained sand. Bitumen injection followed fracturing into a hydro-carbon reservoir at depth, generated from a Jurassic/Cretaceous source rock. Diagenesis of the host rock was largely completed by the time of bitumen injection, reflecting the long time gap during which source rock maturation occurred. Impurities in the bitumen include large quantities of rock fragments, abraded during injection, and crystals of metal oxides and sulphides.
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