Hydrocarbon Potential Of Moomba Field, Cooper Basin, South Australia

Abstract

Moomba Field lies in the Cooper Basin of southern part of Australia. Cooper Basin is an intracratonic sedimentary basin that formed during the late carboniferous to Early Permian as a result of lithospheric extension followed by differential subsidence, resulting in the formation of interconnected troughs and structural lows. Subsequent thermal sag and moderate compression during the Triassic and Jurassic formed anticlinal and fault-bounded structures that serve as the primary hydrocarbon traps within the basin. The study combines seismic interpretation, petrophysical analysis, 3D reservoir property modeling and geothermal assessment to characterize the geological framework, facies distribution reservoir properties and geothermal regime of the Moomba Field. This study used 3D seismic cube and well log data of Moomba-01, Moomba-50, Moomba-131, Moomba-191, Moomba-225 and Moomba-262. In addition, three-dimensional reservoir models of porosity, water saturation and seismic facies were generated to characterize the spatial distribution of reservoir properties, identify potential reservoir zones and improve subsurface understanding. Detailed seismic interpretation followed by time and depth structure maps all indicate a large, low relief anticlinal feature with in Moomba Field with vertically coherent closures in the Cadnaowie, Toolachee and Patchawarra Formations. This stacked trap geometry is the main way of hydrocarbon concentration in the field. Furthermore, a geothermal evaluation was conducted by creating a three-dimensional model temperature model using well temperature data and combining geothermal gradient, thermal conductivity and heat flow analyses to describe the subsurface thermal conditions and evaluate the geothermal potential of the Moomba Field