The Late Cretaceous—Miocene supra‐salt structures in Block M, Lower Congo Basin (Congo, West Africa) and the controls on channel development

Abstract

The Lower Congo Basin is a typical passive continental margin basin of West Africa and is currently the focus and hot spot of deep‐sea oil and gas exploration. Previous studies have focused on the deformation process and mechanism of the salt rock itself, but have ignored the interaction process between the faults and salt diapirs. The direct influence of the interaction process between the faults and salt diapirs on oil and gas exploration is reflected in the control of the reservoir distribution. In recent years, most of the oil and gas discovered in the Lower Congo Basin have been concentrated in the Oligocene–Miocene turbidite reservoirs, and the distribution of channel sand bodies is largely affected by supra‐salt tectonic activity. In this study, Block M in the Lower Congo Basin was selected for study. Based on the 3D seismic, drilling, and logging data, the typical structural styles and stress mechanisms were analysed. The 2D Move software was used to restore the tectonic evolution history and, based on this, established the interaction model of salt diapirs and faults, and summarized the action modes of diverse types of sedimentary channels. The research results are expected to lay the foundation for follow‐up studies on the laws of hydrocarbon accumulation.