Late Triassic Evaporites Research Articles

Aptian−Albian extension in Tethyan rifted continental passive margin of Tunisia inferred from sequential restorations of balanced cross-sections and expansion index

This article presents an overview of regional extensional deformation across the north-facing southern Tethyan continental passive margin of Tunisia during the Aptian and Albian syn-rift stages. Because of the Late Eocene, Late Miocene and Pleistocene orogenic overprinting, the earlier extensional history of the Tunisian Atlassic province had to be reconstructed from balanced and sequentially restored transects across four key fault systems active at the time. These were used to (i) estimate the amount and timing of extension and (ii) calculate the expansion index (EI) for each fault system. The analysis demonstrates the region experienced a very significant amount of mid-Cretaceous extension, representing the last of several Permian-Mesozoic rift events. Two closely linked styles of deformation were recognised: thick-skinned basement involved faulting and shallow listric faulting detached on decollement surfaces within late Triassic evaporites. Both styles of faulting triggered salt diapirism.Sequential pre-orogenic restorations of a transect across the Tebaga Kebili and Orbata faults in the southern part of this province suggest both experienced a large amount of extensional displacement during the Aptian and Albian (Aptian-Albian extension = 2.6 km), recorded by footwall erosion, growth strata, rollover structures and changes in sedimentary facies. A similar restoration across the Labaiedh (M'rhila-Cherichira) fault system further north, identified both thick and thin-skinned extensional movement associated with diapiric growth and salt extrusion reaching a maximum during the Aptian (Aptian-Albian extension = 0.55 km). A pre-Tertiary restoration of the Teboursouk fault system in the northern part of the province, demonstrated thick-skinned extension peaking during the Albian (Aptian-Albian extension = 0.4 km). This accommodated a thick sequence of basinal shales to the north, deformed by active diapirism with sea-floor salt extrusion, triggered by deep basement faulting and enhanced by the plastic incompetent character of the thick shale dominant overburden.Regional extension across the Tunisian Atlassic province during the Aptian-Albian was contemporaneous with a significant change in intra-plate stress across northern Africa, the opening of the South Atlantic and structural reorganization along the East African continental margin. This synchroneity across such a wide region may reflect some still poorly understood deep crustal processes, ultimately responsible for reactivating older rift faults and regional tilting across the province. The associated gravity salt gliding and diapirism bear comparison with the post-rift deformational style of the South Atlantic passive margin. However intra-evaporite decollement surfaces were more local, limited by active thick-skinned faulting with diapirism typically soft linked to deeper fault movement.

Anatomy and evolution of the Astoin diapiric complex, sub-Alpine fold-and-thrust belt (France)

The structure of the southwestern branch of the Alpine orogen is affected by the extensive Late Triassic evaporites. These evaporites have been involved in polyphased salt tectonics since the early Liassic, coeval with the Tethyan rifting, and are the décollement level for thrusts in the external parts during Alpine orogeny. The role of salt tectonics in this branch of the Alpine arc is re-evaluated in order to determine the relative importance of early deformation related to salt motion with respect to deformation related to main Alpine compressional events. This paper focuses on one structure identified as diapiric since the 1930’s: the Astoin diapir (Goguel, 1939). Analysis of geological maps together with new field work have allowed to better define diapirism in the Upper Triassic evaporites outcrops around Astoin. Study of the diapir and the surrounding depocenters reveals a major involvement of salt in the structuration of the area, since the Liassic. Several salt ridges are linked to a main diapiric structure, explaining why we call it the “diapiric complex” of Astoin. Salt tectonics was initiated during the Liassic rifting, and a few locations show evidence of reactive diapirism whereas in others evidence of passive diapirism as early as the Liassic is seen. Passive diapirism continued during the post-rift stage of Alpine margin history in the Late Jurassic and Cretaceous when an allochthonous salt sheet was emplaced. Diapirism also occurred during the Oligocene while the Alpine foreland basin was developing in this part of the European margin of the Alps. Serial interpretative cross-sections have been drawn in order to illustrate the lateral variations of diapirism and structural style. Sequential evolutions for each cross-section are proposed to reconstruct the diapiric complex evolution through time. The Astoin diapir shows a complex structural framework with an important along-strike variation of diapiric activity. Most of the geometries are inherited from salt tectonics that occurred during extension, and in some places these early structures are overprinted by Alpine compressional structures.

New Mapping of the World-Class Jinding Zn-Pb Deposit, Lanping Basin, Southwest China: Genesis of Ore Host Rocks and Records of Hydrocarbon-Rock Interaction

Abstract Jinding is the third-largest known Mississippi Valley-type (MVT) Zn-Pb deposit. It is hosted by a dome containing a suite of complex breccias and sandstones with abundant gypsum and anhydrite. This study presents the results of new geologic mapping of the Jinding open pit and discusses the geology of the deposit in detail. Our new data support a previously proposed model where the deposit is hosted in an evaporite dome created by the diapiric migration of Late Triassic evaporites during Paleocene thrust loading. Nearly all of the mineralization in the deposit is hosted by evaporite diapir-related rocks, including diapiric breccias and laterally extruded material mixed with fluvial sandy sediments (limestone clast-bearing sandstones) and overlying gypsum-sand diapiric units (mainly clast-free sandstones). The new mapping determined that the currently light gray colored sandstones within the Jinding dome were originally red, with the bleaching being a response to calcite and pyrite alteration as a result of pre-ore interaction with hydrocarbons. The bleached sandstones host sphalerite and galena that replaced calcite, and Zn-Pb sulfides also occur in limestone breccias and gypsum-rich rocks as a result of replacement and open space-filling mineralizing processes. The Jinding deposit demonstrates that MVT Zn-Pb mineralization can be hosted by a variety of evaporite diapir-related rocks and indicates that dome structures and the presence of pre-ore hydrocarbons are both important for the formation of Zn-Pb mineralization.

New constraints on the evolution of 87Sr/86Sr of seawater during the Upper Triassic

Abstract The Late Triassic time interval witnessed several important biological turnovers, extinctions and onset of new life forms. Therefore, it is crucial to better constrain the tectonic, climatic and oceanographic framework at this time. The radiogenic strontium isotopic composition (87Sr/86Sr) of seawater, recorded in marine carbonates is sensitive to variations in continental weathering and oceanic spreading rates. This makes it a powerful proxy for palaeo-environmental reconstructions and an excellent global stratigraphic correlation tool of marine sediment records. In this study, we present a new and extended 87Sr/86Sr dataset across the late Norian - Hettangian interval, established from carbonate successions in Austria and Turkey. The well-established biostratigraphy and high sampling resolution allow evaluating changes in the 87Sr/86Sr record with a better time constraint than in previous studies. An exceptionally sharp trend towards unradiogenic values has been observed in the latest Norian and in the early Rhaetian from 0.70800 to 0.70779. Considering Late Triassic climate change, updated tectonic models and actual dating of magmatic events, possible explanations for the observed trend in the 87Sr/86Sr record are: (i) enhanced dissolution of pre-Norian carbonates, (ii) dissolution of widespread Late Triassic evaporites and (iii) tectonic reorganization of sedimentary basins due to the break-up of the supercontinent Pangea. At the very end of the Choristoceras marshi Zone, in the late Rhaetian, the unradiogenic 87Sr/86Sr trend is reversed. This is likely related to environmental changes due to the continental emplacement of the Central Atlantic Magmatic Province.

An evaporite-based high-resolution sulfur isotope record of Late Permian and Triassic seawater sulfate

Variations in the sulfur isotope composition of dissolved marine sulfate through time reflect changes in the global sulfur cycle and are intimately related to changes in the carbon and oxygen cycles. A large shift in the sulfur isotope composition of sulfate at the Permian/Triassic boundary has been recognized for long time and a number of studies were carried out to understand the causes and significance of this shift. However, data for the Middle and Late Triassic are very sparse and the stratigraphic evolution of the sulfur isotope composition of seawater is poorly constrained due to the small number of samples analyzed and/or due to the limited stratigraphic intervals studied. Moreover, in the last few years the Triassic timescale has significantly changed due to a wealth of new radiometric and stratigraphic data. In this study we show that for the Late Permian and the Triassic it is possible to obtain a precise reconstruction of the evolution of the sulfur cycle, for parts of it at sub-million year resolution, by analyzing exclusively gypsum and anhydrite deposits. We base our reconstruction on new data from the Middle and Late Triassic evaporites of Northern Switzerland and literature data from evaporites from Germany, Austria, Italy and the Middle East. We propose a revised correlation between the well-dated marine Tethyan sections in northern Italy and the evaporites from Northern Switzerland and from the Germanic Basin calibrated to the newest radiometric absolute age scale. This new correlation allows for a precise dating of the evaporites and constructing a composite sulfur isotope evolution of seawater sulfate from the latest Permian (Lopingian Epoch) to the Norian. We show that a rapid positive shift of approximately 24‰ at the Permian-Triassic boundary can be used to constrain seawater sulfate concentrations in the range of 2–6mM, thus higher than previous estimates but with less rapid changes. Finally, we discuss two possible evolution scenarios for the Middle Triassic negative shift to values of 15‰ that subsequently remain constant during the Late Triassic.

An overview on the characteristics of geothermal carbonate reservoirs in southern Tuscany

This paper focuses on brittle deformation and fluid-rock interaction, for enhancing permeability in carbonate geothermal reservoir. The relationships between fractures and fluid flow at different structural levels within a geothermal circuit are described through examples from exhumed geothermal systems cropping out in southern Tuscany, with emphasis on the carbonate reservoirs, located within the late Triassic evaporite level and/or at the base of the Tuscan Nappe. The description is based on the fact that geothermal fluids are mainly made up of meteoric water channelled to depth through structural conduits, affecting regionally hot rocks. In this pathway, the meteoric water is transformed in geothermal fluid, becoming chemically aggressive, thus favouring leaching of hosting rocks, and enhancing and maintaining permeability. The fluid-rock interaction is promoted by existing fractures and/or by unhomogeneities in the rock-textures, as it is the case of the Miocene cataclasite located within the late Triassic evaporite. Travertine deposits can occur if fluids reach the surface after having circulated in carbonate reservoirs. Since permeability is controlled by fluid-rock geochemistry and by the possibility to have fluids continuously renewed, we conclude that the fluid-rock interaction and high temperature of hosting rocks make the geothermal issue a specific case of study and therefore the conclusion on oil reservoirs formation cannot be completely transferred to geothermal exploitation issue.

Novel applications of fluid inclusions and isotope geochemistry in unravelling the genesis of fossil travertine systems

AbstractThe Denizli Basin is a fault‐bounded Neogene–Quaternary depression located in the Western Anatolian Extensional Province, Western Turkey. The basin is a unique geological site with abundant active and fossil (Quaternary) travertine and tufa deposits. Fluid inclusion microthermometry and isotopic analysis were applied to study the genesis of the Ballık fossil travertine deposits, located in the south‐eastern part of the basin. Microthermometry on fluid inclusions indicates that the main travertine precipitating and cementing fluids are characterized by low salinity (<0·7 wt% NaCl equivalent) and variable temperatures that cluster at <50°C and ca 100°C. Fluids of meteoric origin have been heated by migration to the deeper subsurface, possibly in a local high geothermal gradient setting. A later uncommon cementation phase is related to a fluid with a significantly higher salinity (25·5 to 26·0 wt% bulk). The fluid obtained its salinity by interaction with Late Triassic evaporite layers. Strontium isotopes indicate that the parent carbonate source rock of the different travertine precipitates is very likely to be the Triassic limestone of the Lycian Nappes. Carbon isotopes suggest that the parent CO2 gas originated from thermal decarbonation of the Lycian limestones with minor contributions of magmatic degassing and organic soil CO2. Oxygen isotopes confirm the meteoric origin of the fluids and indicate disequilibrium precipitation because of evaporation and degassing. Results were integrated within the available geological data of the Denizli Basin in a generalized travertine precipitation model, which enhanced the understanding of fossil travertine systems. The study highlights the novel application of fluid inclusion research in unravelling the genesis of continental carbonates and provides several recommendations for hydrocarbon exploration in travertine‐bearing sedimentary basins. The findings suggest that travertine bodies and their parent carbonate source rocks have the potential to constitute interesting subsurface hydrocarbon reservoirs.

Volcanic spreading forcing and feedback in geothermal reservoir development, Amiata Volcano, Italia

We made a stratigraphic, structural and morphologic study of the Amiata Volcano in Italy. We find that the edifice is dissected by intersecting grabens that accommodate the collapse of the higher sectors of the volcano. In turn, a number of compressive structures and diapirs exist around the margin of the volcano. These structures create an angular drainage pattern, with stream damming and captures, and a set of lakes within and around the volcano. We interpret these structures as the result of volcanic spreading of Amiata on its weak substratum, formed by the late Triassic evaporites (Burano Anhydrites) and the Middle-Jurassic to Early-Cretaceous clayey chaotic complexes (Ligurian Complex). Regional doming created a slope in the basement facilitating the outward flow and spreading of the ductile layers forced by the volcanic load.We model the dynamics of spreading with a scaled lubrication approximation of the Navier Stokes equations, and numerically study a set of solutions. In the model we include simple functions for volcanic deposition and surface erosion that change the topography over time. Scaling indicates that spreading at Amiata could still be active. The numerical solution shows that, as the central part of the edifice sinks into the weak basement, diapiric structures of the underlying formations form around the base of the volcano. Deposition of volcanic rocks within the volcano and surface erosion away from it both enhance spreading. In addition, a sloping basement may constitute a trigger for spreading and formation of trains of adjacent diapirs. As a feedback, the hot hydrothermal fluids decrease the shear strength of the anhydrites facilitating the spreading process.Finally, we observe that volcanic spreading has created ideal heat traps that constitute todays' exploited geothermal fields at Amiata. Normal faults generated by volcanic spreading, volcanic conduits, and direct contact between volcanic rocks (which host an extensive fresh-water aquifer) and the rocks of the geothermal field, constitute ideal pathways for water recharge during vapour extraction for geothermal energy production. We think that volcanic spreading could maintain faults in a critically stressed state, facilitating the occurrence of induced and triggered seismicity.

Diagenesis versus hydrothermalism and fluid–rock interaction within the Tuscan Nappe of the Monte Amiata CO2‐rich geothermal area (Italy)

AbstractIn southern Tuscany (central Italy), deep to shallow geothermal systems were active since the Pleistocene and comprise fluids carrying variable amounts of CO2. The Monte Amiata geothermal fields include two main reservoirs: a deep one located in the Palaeozoic metamorphic succession (1300–3000 m deep) belonging to the Tuscan metamorphic ‘basement’ and a shallow one hosted in the Mesozoic sedimentary succession (500–1000 m deep) belonging to the Tuscan Nappe. Multiple sets of calcite veins were investigated in some outcrops of the Tuscan Nappe succession exposed in the Monte Amiata area and surroundings. Two main fluid systems were characterized: the former related to combined diagenetic syn‐tectonic processes from highly saline fluids after interaction with the Late Triassic evaporites (Burano Fm) and the latter related to a fossil geothermal system, Pleistocene in age, fed by low‐salinity meteoric fluids, carrying CO2, radiogenic Sr and heavy O isotopes after interaction with the subsurface rocks. Comparison with the present‐day hydrothermal fluids allowed to sketch the thermal evolution of the system from past to present. Geochemical data proved that portions of the vein–host rocks were reset after interaction with CO2‐rich fluids circulating in the past. Consequently, textural and mineralogical changes are expected to have occurred with respect to the undisturbed rock masses. Understanding these modifications, their location and extension, is a prerequisite to construct (i) geochemical models addressed to the comprehension of the diagenesis induced in sediments after long‐term CO2 storage; and (ii) geological models applied to the prediction of rock heterogeneity distribution within the upper reservoirs, characterizing the shallow (500–1500 m) geothermal systems of southern Tuscany.

Sulfur and oxygen isotope compositions of Upper Triassic sulfates from Northerm Apennines (Italy): palaeogeographic and hidrogeochemical implications

Upper Triassic bedded evaporite sulfate of the Burano Formation outcropping at Cerreto Pass between Tuscany and Emilia-Romagna in the Northern Apennines were analyzed for sulfur and oxygen isotope compositions, yielding d34S and d18O values of 15.5±0.4‰ and 10.8±1.2‰, respectively (mean ±99% confidence intervals). Combining these values with those of other Burano Formation sulfate deposits along the Apennine chain, mean for d34S and d18O values are obtained (15.2±0.2‰ and 10.9±0.5‰, respectively). These isotopic signatures are interpreted as preserved primary features, despite the fact that the Burano Formation underwent anchizone to epizone metamorphism during the Apennine orogenesis. An overall d18O value of 10.9±1.5‰ (mean ± pooled standard deviation), obtained by combining consistent sets of data from Italy and Spain, closely approaches that of gypsum deposited from the Tethys ocean during the Late Triassic. In addition, reviewing the isotope data published on Late Triassic evaporite sulfates from the Mediterranean area and abroad, several d34S values appear to be lower than the inferred primary isotopic signature, and seemly decrease from East to West in the Mediterranean region, suggesting a similar trend for the Tethys ocean sulfate. Possibly, 34S-depleted sulfate entered the ocean through oxidation of volcanic SO2 emitted in the atmosphere and degassed from the seafloor during the development of Late Triassic rifting. On the other hand, positive shifts of d34S and d18O values also occur, defining a common trend that may be related to synsedimentary biological effects or post-depositional metasomatic-metamorphic effects, the latter affecting particularly the d18O signature. Therefore, the d34S and d18O signatures of evaporite sulfate may provide a like “slide-rule” diagram to distinguish between isotopic effects related to biological or abiological processes, thus contributing to the reconstruction of paleoenvironments and paleogeographic settings. Based on the d34S-d18O “slide-rule”, the isotopic composition of sulfate dissolved in spring and stream waters of northern Tuscany was interpreted in terms of origin of the sulfate and modifying processes in solution. It was concluded that sulfate in springs derives from Upper Triassic evaporite existing locally at depth (Burano Formation), whereas sulfate in streams is manifestly a mixture of Burano Formation sulfate with supergene sulfate from oxidation of sulfide in the rocks. In sulfurous springs, both sulfur and oxygen isotope fractionations with respect to the source sulfate signatures may be ascribed to bacterial effects. However, the oxygen isotope exchange of sulfate with water should have been a very minor process as supported by the nearsurface temperature values estimated by sulfate-water oxygen isotope thermometry.

The effects of basement ramps on deformation of the Prebetics (Spain): A combined field and analogue modelling study

In this study we test whether pre-existing basement faults control deformation in the Prebetic zones of the Betic Cordillera. We focus on an area in the northern part of the Prebetics which is dominated by a transpressional fault system consisting of a NNE–SSW striking fault zone and E–W striking small-scale thrusts. Field observations show that both sets of faults formed in a regional NW–SE to NNW–SSE directed compressional stress field during the Miocene. We propose that the faults formed on top of a basement containing basement ramps overlain by a décollement of Late Triassic evaporites and clays. These basement ramps have either an E–W or NNE–SSW orientation and result from extensional faulting prior to the compressional phase. The style of faulting in the overlying sediments is controlled by the variation in orientation of the pre-existing basement ramps in a uniform stress field. Where the ramps have an E–W orientation small-scale thrusting and folding occurs, where the ramps are oriented NNE–SSW the fault zone acts as an oblique-slip fault. The model was tested by analogue tectonic experiments incorporating a ductile layer, representing the décollement, overlain by a brittle layer representing the overlying sediments. The pre-existing basement ramps were represented by rigid material. The close similarity between the structures produced during the analogue experiments and those observed in the field suggests that pre-existing basement faults exert a major role on deformation of the Prebetics.

Exhumation of the Corrib Gas Field, Slyne Basin, offshore Ireland

The Corrib Gas Field contains in excess of 10 12 SCF (28.3×10 9 Sm 3 ) of gas in place in a Triassic fluviatile sandstone reservoir, sealed by late Triassic evaporites and trapped in a relatively simple, but underfilled, NE–SW-trending anticlinal structure. In contrast, the post-Triassic overburden manifests a more complex evolution with indications of flipped polarity, extensional faulting on a crestal detachment structure during the Jurassic, succeeded by alternate episodes of burial and exhumation from the Early Cretaceous onwards. Compactional, thermal and stratigraphic frames of reference have been used to assess the magnitude and timing of the principal exhumation episode, which occurred during the early Cretaceous. Large uncertainty is associated with exhumation estimates derived from individual techniques, but stratigraphic analysis and seismic interpretation support the conclusion that kilometre-scale (800–1700 m) exhumation and erosion of the Jurassic overburden has occurred in the Corrib area. A number of post-Aptian re-burial and exhumation events also occurred but are unlikely to have exceeded the earlier maximum burial of source, reservoir and seal rocks achieved during the Late Jurassic. Continued local extensional reactivation of the listric detachment structure, post-Aptian, has resulted in a pattern of heterogeneous exhumation within the field area. However, the severely attenuated post-rift stratigraphic record throughout the Slyne Basin suggests that long-wavelength processes, such as mantle hotspot activity and shoulder uplift linked to the rifting and thermal subsidence of the Rockall Basin, were the primary drivers of exhumation in the Corrib area during the Cretaceous-Tertiary period.

Petroleum prospects of Lebanon: some remarks from sedimentological and diagenetic studies of Jurassic carbonates

Only seven exploration wells have been drilled in Lebanon to date, failing to encounter oil or gas in commercial quantities and to penetrate into unexposed pre-Jurassic reservoirs. This paper shows that the sedimentological and diagenetic characteristics of the major Lebanese Jurassic carbonate rock unit (the Kesrouane Formation; thickness >1000 m) negate Jurassic hydrocarbon prospectivity in northern Mount Lebanon. The Jurassic platform in this region was subjected to a first emergence and invasion by meteoric waters in the Late Jurassic, causing a pervasive cementation. A second phase of uplift and meteoric flushing occurred in the Cenozoic. Thus, only the areas located far from the Jurassic and post-Cretaceous phreatic realms (e.g. offshore Tripoli, NW Lebanon) may have been less affected by meteoric diagenesis and still provide promising prospects. A 1993 seismic survey, offshore Tripoli, confirmed the presence of Late Triassic evaporites in northern Lebanon. This also adds confidence to the results of the Nahr Ibrahim electrical survey, which earlier suggested the presence of these evaporites in the subsurface of central Lebanon. The pre-Jurassic sequence, hence, is sealed and protected from the meteoric invasion observed in the overlying Jurassic rocks. Accordingly, the Qartaba horst structure (central-northern Lebanon) would be equally, if not more, attractive for a pre-Jurassic play.

The Vercors and Chartreuse Massifs at the Leading Edge of the Alpine Thrust Belt: Tectonic History and Petroleum Assessment: ABSTRACT

The Vercors and Chartreuse Massifs are located at the leading edge of the Western Alps Thrust Belt. They developed in late Miocene-Pliocene times above a major decollement hosted in late Triassic evaporites and/or Liassic marls. The uplift of both massifs led to the oblique and partial inversion of the previous Mesozoic margin of the Southeastern Basin, the thickest onshore sedimentary basin in France. Both massifs are unexplored. The regional geology of eastern France and the results of ten wells located in the near foreland suggest that source rocks are present in late Paleozoic and late Liassic strata, and that fractured sandstones and/or limestones of Triassic/Jurassic age could act as reservoirs. A nonexclusive seismic survey has been shot in 1991 by CGG allowing the first well constrained balanced sections to be drawn across both massifs. They have been used inturn to model the forward kinematics of thrust propagation, and the source rock maturation history, using the {open_quotes}Thrustpack{close_quotes} software developed by IFP and partners.

Tertiary extensional tectonics in Tuscany (Northern Apennines, Italy)

Two extensional events have been recognized in the Tertiary evolution of Tuscany. The first event occurred in the period between the Late Oligocene and Late Tortonian and caused a stretching of 120% or greater; the second event occurred between the Late Tortonian and Quaternary Periods and caused a stretching not greater than 10%. The first event is characterized by the exhumation of middle crust rocks and therefore by the development of core complexes. The most significant structures of the first event are: low-angle normal faults, which characterize the upper plate of the core complexes, and ductile shear zones, which characterize the lower plate. The low-angle normal faults tend to die out in the Late Triassic evaporite level, which constitutes the main detachment of the core complexes. The main structures of the second extensional event are high-angle normal faults which dissect all the previous tectonic features. These faults border tectonic depressions which were the site of clastic sedimentation from Late Tortonian to Quaternary time. These normal faults may tend to flatten in a seismic lozenge-shaped band explained as an active extensional shear zone, which is located at the brittle/ductile boundary. A similar explanation is given for the detachment located in the Late Triassic evaporite level during the first extensional event. While the first extensional event is in the framework of the Northern Apennine post-collisional evolution, the second extensional event, because it affects an already stretched crust, could be attributed to the southern Tyrrhenian opening, which began during Late Tortonian.

The Jura Thrust Belt and Its Foreland: Tectonic History and Petroleum Plays

The Jura thrust belt in eastern France is the accurate leading edge of the alps, which developed in the Neogene as a thin-skinned wedge of imbricate sheets of Mesozoic calcareous and marly platform sediments. The basal decollement generally is hosted in middle and late Triassic evaporites and salt layers. The foreland to the west in the Bresse basin, a complex late Eocene-early Miocene north-south-elongated rift superimposed on the Mesozoic platform and on more locally distributed Stephanian and Permian troughs related to the post-compressional collapse of the Variscan chain. Two main source rock intervals have been recognized so far in the whole area: coal measures and bituminous shales of the Stephanian-Autunian and marine black marls of the Toarcien. Reservoirs and associated seals are distributed more randomly and include sandstones, limestones, and dolostones of the Triassic and Jurassic. Tiny gas fields were exploited at the Jura front in the past but have now been abandoned. Significant oil shows have been encountered recently in Triassic sandstones at the southern edge of the Jura mountains. They have boosted exploratory plays considerably and, as a result, about 50% of the Jura and Bresse area presently is covered by licenses and license applications.

Tectonic Evolution and Hydrocarbon Prospects of Tunisia-Sicily Shelf: ABSTRACT

The stratigraphic evolution, structural styles, and principal hydrocarbon prospects of the Tunisia-Sicily shelf are all linked to the crustal created during the middle Mesozoic rifting of the Tethyan margin of North Africa. Transtensional stretching and fragmentation of the Tunisia-Sicily shelf during the Late Triassic to Jurassic at the junction of the south Sahara and Gilbraltar fracture zones created a complex array of ridges and furrows and localized pull-apart basins. This block-faulted shelf region was buried during the Cretaceous and early Cenozoic beneath a cover stratigraphy that ranged widely from a thin pelagic limestone succession devoid of terrigenous components in Sicily to a considerably thicker neritic Tunisian succession containing terrigenous nd carbonate rocks. Differences in stratigraphic character across the shelf relate to the relative position of Sicily and Tunisia between the unstable and subsident Tethyan margin and the stable and emergent Saharan platform. As the North African continental margin subducted northward beneath the accretionary Kabyle-Calabrian belt in the late Cenozoic, the thin carbonate successions of Sicily responded by detaching in a series of southward-migrating thrust sheets. Along strike in Tunisia, the thrust sheets die out and stress was taken up by folding the thick marly succession weakened by numerous Late Triassic evaporite diapirs. Despite differences in structural style, the orientations of the structures in both Tunisia and Sicily have been guided by the crustal template created by middle esozoic rifting. Hydrocarbons on the Tunisian-Sicily shelf are related to (1) Mesozoic or younger structures that deform the early Paleozoic black shale-orthoquartzite succession of the Saharan platform, (2) synrift anoxic basin facies, (3) the Cretaceous-early Cenozoic shelf margin in the Tunisian section, and (4) late Cenozoic synorogenic clastic facies. End_of_Article - Last_Page 305------------