The potential use of satellite gravity data for oil prospecting in Tanimbar Basin, Eastern Indonesia

Abstract

One way to increase oil and gas production in Indonesia is through the geophysical study for new deposits in Basins frontier, i.e., Tanimbar basin in Province of Maluku, Eastern of Indonesia. The Tanimbar basin is located in an area known as the Outer Banda Arc. Gravity is a usually geophysical method used for the sedimentary basin. But for the regional scale, the method requires an expensive cost and long time-consuming. In this research, we use the satellite gravity data provided by Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California San Diego. This data has a low resolution of 1.5 km for 1 pixel and also free access. The satellite data will be compared with the gravity ground survey. The data was acquired by the University of London and Bandung Institute of Technology in 1987. The gravity satellite can show a more contrasting of geological structure compared to the ground survey, as well as syncline and anticline; the anomaly is indicated by the relatively high Bouguer data (3.5 to 25 mGal). The high anomaly is also influenced by tectonic activity from inner and Outer Banda Arc that exists in eastern Indonesia. The sub-sedimentary basin is represented by the low Bouguer anomalies (-40 to -25 mGal) that correlated well to ground survey data. Based on the result, it can be concluded; the satellite gravity is potentially used for delineating the sedimentary basin in Tanimbar Island.