2017616 AnoverviewoftheprolificsoutheastoffshoreNigerDeltaOffshore

Anoverviewoftheprolificsoutheast
offshoreNigerDelta
04/01/1997

Laboratoryforunderstandingdeepwaterconcessiongeology
ToyinAkinosho

ChevronNigeria

EasternNigerDeltastratigraphiccolumn.
EasternNigerDelta.

ThesoutheasternoffshoreNigerDelta,asfaroutastheproximaledgeofthecontinentalslope,
occupiessome6,000squaremiles,roughlyonetenthoftheentirebasin.Yetitdelivers550,000b/d
oil,morethanonequarterofNigeria's1.85millionb/doilOPECquota,aswellas110,000b/d
condensate,whichiscustomarilynotconsideredaspartofthequota.

ThissmallcornerofNigeriaisalsoresponsibleforthemajornewscomingoutoftheNigerian
segmentoftheoilpatchinthelast15years.Somemajorhighlights:

Nigeria'slargestcondensatefield,Oso(1,000MMBOE),whichproduces110,000b/d
condensatefortheMobilNNPCjointventure,wasdiscoveredin1967.Butitonlyjustcameon
streamin1989.

Mobil'sgiantEdopField(900MMBOE)wasdiscoveredinthiscornerin1981.

Earlylastyear,MobilandElfwereembroiledinastruggleforwhoshouldoperatethehugeoil
reservesintheAmenamKponoField(800MMBO),whichisthelargestdiscoveryintheNiger
Deltainthelast15years.ElfdrilledAmenam1(OML99)inJune1990,testedacummulative
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9,570b/doilinfourzoneswithchokesizesbetween28/64and36/64.APIgravityranged
between42.1and46.4.Twosubsequentappraisalsdeliveredprettymuchthesameresult,
withAmenam3encounteringadeepersand.InApril1995Mobilreportedvianewswire,
17,000b/doiland131,604Mcf(cummulative)flowratesfromthreesandsinKpono1,which
laterturnedouttobeonthesamestructureasAmenam.

TheoffshorefieldZafiro,thefirstcommercialoildiscoveryinEquatorialGuinea,islocated
barely3.5kmsouthofElf'sOML102.Mobilhascommencedproductionofthisfield,but
NigeriaandElfareseekingjointproduction,basedonclaimsthattheZafiroFieldstraddles
Elf'sOML102inNigeriaandMobil'sBlockBinEquatorialGuinea.

Nigeriaanditssoutheasternneighbor,Cameroonareengulfedinalowintensitywarcaused
bya20yearoldboundarydisputeintheBakassiPeninsula,intheextremeeasterncorner.

Withatotalacreageofamere3,273sqkm,inthemaindeltaarea,alllocatedinthesoutheast
offshore(excludingdeepwater),MobilcomparespoorlyinsheersizewithShell's31,777sqkm
andChevron's8,936sqkm.YetitrankssecondonlytoShellinproductionandcurrently
outdoeseveryotherNigerianoperatorinactivity,deployingeightrigsonanaverageof13
locationsinanygivenmonthsinceSeptember1996.

Petroleumgeology
ThesoutheastoffshoreNigeriais,consideredofaslightlydifferentpetroleumgeologyfromtherest
oftheonshoreandoffshorepartsofthebasin.Itislocatedinacomplexstructuralenvironment
resultingfromdeepseatedshaledeformationandassociatedfaulting.Shaleridges,toethrustsand
diapirismarepresentinthiscorner.Thereishigherlikelihoodofstratigraphictrapshere.Toseethe
petrologicaluniquenessofthesoutheastoffshore,wemustrecallagainthegeologyoftheentire
basin.

TheNigerDeltaissituatedontheGulfofGuineaonthewestcoastofcentralAfrica.Duringthe
tertiaryitbuiltoutintotheAtlanticOceanatthemouthoftheNigerBenueRiversystem.
AccumulationofmarinesedimentsinthebasinprobablycommencedinAlbiantime,afterthe
openingoftheSouthAtlanticoceanbetweentheAfricanandSouthAmericancontinents.Truedelta
development,howeverstartedonlyinthelatePaleocene/Eocene,whensedimentsbegantobuild
outbeyondtroughsbetweenbasementhorstblocksatthenorthernflankofthepresentdeltaarea.
Sincethenthedeltaplainhasprogradedsouthwardontooceaniccrust,graduallyassuminga
convextotheseamorphology.

ThesedimentsduringthePaleocene/EocenewerederivedlargelyfromtheBenueNigerdrainage
systemwhichwasandstillisthemostimportantsupplierandfromtheCrossRiverSystem,

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whichsuppliedsedimenttotheeasterndeltaarea,ofwhichthesoutheasternoffshoreisa
prominentportion.

Throughoutthegeologicalhistoryofthedelta,itsstructureandstratigraphyhavebeencontrolledby
theinterplaybetweenratesofsedimentsupplyandsubsidence.IntheMiocene/Eocenetimes,
sedimentsupplyintothedeltaincreasedsignificantlyfromthecrossriversystem,whicheroded
mainlybasementcomplexrocksandtheCretaceousembaymentsedimentswhichhadbeen
derivedfrombasementcomplexcrystallinerocks.Importantinfluencesonsedimentationratehave
beeneustaticsealevelchangesandclimaticvariationsinthehinterland.Subsidencehasbeen
controlledlargelybyinitialbasementmorphologyanddifferentialsedimentloadingonunstable
shale.Themainsedimentsupplyhasbeenprovidedbyanextensivedrainagesystem,whichinits
lowerreachesfollowstwofailedriftarms,theBenueandtheBidabasins.

TheNigerDeltahasprogradedintotheGulfofGuineaatasteadilyincreasingrateinresponseto
theevolvingdrainagearea,basementsubsidence,andeustaticsealevelchanges.Thesubmarine
portionofthedeltaconsistsofabroad,shallowshelfwhichgraduallymergesintoalongcontinental
slopeandriseextendingasfaras250kmfromthecoast.Theupperpartoftheslopeismarkedby
azoneoffaultedsediments,claywallsanddiapirs,knownasthedistalpart,asitrepresentsthe
outerreachesofthemostdevelopedpartofthedelta.

Stratigraphy
TheNigerDeltaisaregressivesequenceofclasticsedimentsdevelopedinaseriesofofflapcycles.
Alldeepwellsinthebasindocumentatripartitelithostratigraphicsuccessionanwhichthe
regressivesequenceisdemonstrated.Theuppermost(shallowest)partofthesequenceisa
massivenonmarinesandsection,knownastheBeninFormation,depositedinalluvialorupper
coastalplainenvironments.Thisgradesdownwardsintointerbeddedshallowmarineandfluvial
sands,siltsandclays,whichformthetypicalparallicfaciesportionofthedelta.Itisknownasthe
AgbadaFormationithasdeliveredmostoftheoilproducedintheNigerDeltatodate.

Thebaseofthelithostratigraphicsuccessionconsistsofmassiveandmonotonousmarineshales.
Thissequence,theAkataFormation,ingeneral,containsfewstreaksofsand,possiblyofturbiditic
originandweredepositedinholomarine(deltafronttodeepermarine)environments.

TheNigerDeltabasinextendseastwardoffshoreintotheRioDelRayBasininCameroon,bounded
ontheeastbytheCameroonAnnobonVolcanicaxiswhichispartoftheFernandoPoAscension
FractureZoneextendingintotheAtlantic.

TheMiocenevolcanicityalongthisaxismayhaveaffectedtheeasternpartoftheNigerDelta,
leadingtoupliftandprovidedaridgeforfutureprolificinfusionofshalediapirism.Tertiarytectonism
intheeasternpartofthedeltahasexertedaprofoundinfluenceontheseismicstratigraphyofthe
SouthEasternOffshore.Itisaselfevidenttruththatthestrongdiapirismoffshorecomparedto

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onshoreisprimarilyduetotheprodeltashalesoftheyoungerAkataformationoffshorebeingless
dewateredthantheoldershalesonshore.Also,thebasementhighunderlyingthepresentcoastline
andthediapiriczoneactasbarrierstotheupdipmigrationofshalesfarthersouth.Besides,the
shaletypeoftheAkataformationchangesfromlowMontmorilloniteinpreMiocenetimetohigh
MontmorilloniteinpostOligocene.

TheLateQuarternaryPresentDayNigerDeltaismuchsmallerthantheonshoreareaoccupiedby
theCenozoicNigerDelta.Thepresentdaysubaerialdeltalimitsextendfromtheeasternendofthe
LagosLekkiLagoonComplexatthemouthoftheSilukoRiver,viaaseriesofsinuousarcshaped
boundariestoOnitshaGap,thenalongthevalleyoftheOrashirivertonearthemouthoftheImo
RiverandeastwardstotheKwaIbomouth.NeartheKwaIbomouthmarineestuarineconditions
developintheCrossRiverandRiodelReyareasandextendintoCameroon(ArthurWhiteman,
1982).

TheseareasmaybeclassedasbelongingtoHighEnergyDestructiveEstuarineDeltaEnvironment
incontrasttotheHighEnergyConstructiveLobateArcuateDeltaEnvironmentsituatedtothewest.
Whetherinearliertimesconstructivedeltaicconditionsweredevelopedintheseareasisnotclear
butiftheCrossRiver,butiftheCrossRiver,ImoRiverandothermainriversweremoreactivein
transportingsedimentsthantheyaretoday,thenconstructivedeltacomplexesmayhavedeveloped.
ThepresenceofgrowthfaultsintheoffshoreoftheCrossRiverMouthmayindicatethatsand,silt
claydifferentiationmayhavetakenplaceonalargescaleinthepast.

Whitemanarguesthattheamountofsedimentdischargebythecombinedriversenteringtheocean
eastofthepresentdaydeltaisunlikelytoexceedafewpercentofthatcarriedbytheNigerBenue
complex.TidalrangesareovertwotimesashighastheyareatLagos(3ft)intheCalabarRiver
areaandtidalcurrentsintheCrossRiverRiodelRayFernandoPoareaexceed40cm/secandare
abletokeepsandonthemoveandkeepsiltandclayparticlesinpermanentsuspension,so
preventingorretardingLagoonBarrierBarandProDeltaSlopeformation.Tidalrangesarelikelyto
havebeenhighinthepastbecauseofarestrictivegeographicenvironmentattheheadofGulfof
GuineaandshallowwaterinbetweentheislandofFernandoPoandthemainland.

AgbadaFormationdivisions
Inthesoutheastoffshore,thehydrocarbonrichAgbadaformationisfurthersubdividedintoBiafra,
RubbleandQuaIboemembers.Withinthese,therearetypesectionswithintraandinterformational
relationshipstheBiafraisEarlytolateMiocene.TheRubblebedisdatedLateMiocene.TheBiafra
memberprogradesfromthickcontinental/fluviatilesedimentsinthenorthintodeltaplainanddelta
frontdepositsinthesouth,eventuallybecomingprodeltadepositsshalingintoAkatafarthersouth.

AlthoughOmatsolaarguesthattheQuaIboeisoneoftheseveralearlytoMiddleMiocenecanyons
(includingAfamineasternonshore)andOpuama(inWesternswamp),nowclayfilled,whichwere

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cutintotheshelfduringperiodsofsealevelfall,AAPGpresentationsbyMobilearthscientistsinsist
thatthisveryimportantshalememberisPlioceneinage(ShanmuganetalAAPGNice,1996).Their
thesisalsodiscountsthecanyonfilltheory.

Mobilhasidentifiederosionalanticlinesaswellasslopedependentmassmovementemplaced
seismicfaciesalongwithevidenceoftheQuaIboeasatransgressivedeposit.QuaIboegrades
verticallyupwardsintothetransitionalshallowmarineD1sandwhichisnamedafteratypesection
fromtheMD1well.D1isoverlainbythecontinentalBeninFormation,whichisexpectedlysothin
here.ThetopoftheQuaIboeisveryshallow(0.75secstwt)onseismicprofile.Inanycase,noone
deniesthatMioceneshaletectonismandsealevelfallhavelargelydefinedtheuniquestratigraphy
ofthesoutheastoffshore.

Fromliterature,itwouldappearasiftheQuaIboeisthemostsignificantofthelocalmembersofthe
Agbadainthesoutheastoffshore.Thenameitself,whichisthesameasoneofthemajorriver
systemsintheseparts,conferssomestatus.AndOmatsoladescribesitsimplyasafillwhichforms
thetopsealinMobil'soffshorefields.Inreality,theothermembersarequiteimportant.Somefields
havebeenformedbytheD1sand.Inseveralothers,whichareevenveryhugefields,thereservoir
isasequencewithintheBiaframember.

WithintheQuaIboeandtheBiafratherehavebeendistinct,horizonswhichhavebeencorrelated
withlogdata.TheBiafraissubdividedintoLower,MiddleandUpperBiafra.Yetwithintheseare
visiblyreworkedsedimentsreferredtoasRubble(shouldnotbeconfusedwiththeRubblemember).
ThuswehaveLowerIntraBiafraRubble,ahorizonwithintheBiafra,whichisdifferentfromRubble
bed,anindependentstratigraphicmember.

TheimportanceoftheQuaIboeshaleitselfhasbeenlargelyduetotheIntraQuaIboereservoirs
(e.g.EdopField:SeeHermanceetal:ReservoirCompartmentalizationofdeepwaterIntraQua
Iboesand,Pliocene)EdopFieldoffshoreNigeria,AAPG,1996.TheZafiroFieldinoffshore
EquatorialGuineaisalsoahugeoilpoolstoredinsandswithintheQuaIboe.Acommonly,
identifiedunconformityistheBaseQuaIboeBQI.TheLower,Middle,andUpperBiafraaswellas
BaseQuaIboeBQIandRubblebedsareattributedtotheMiocenetectonism,saidtobeinthree
phases.Theirtypicaltrapsinclude:rolloverstructurewithlandwarddipsonlappedbyrubblebeds
simpleerosionalanticlineshaleormasssupportedsimplerolloveranticlineshalemassstructure
bothoncrestandflank.

CoreexaminationoftheEdopField,asrevealedinMobilsponsoredpapersatthelastAAPG
conferenceinNice,showsthreeIntraQuaIboereservoirsIQI1,2,3,4withthefollowing
characteristics:sandyslump/massflow,muddyslumpmassflow,Bottomcurrentreworkingnon
channelizedturbiditycurrentschannelized(coalesced)turbiditycurrentschannelized(isolated)
turbiditycurrentspelagic/hemipelagicHleveeReworkedslopewavedominatedandtide
dominatedfacies.Withtheexceptionofthereworkedslopeandwavedominatedandtide

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dominatedfacies,allthesefaciesareofdeepwateraffinity.ThepapersaidthattheIntraQuaIboe
sandsweredepositedonanupperslopeenvironmentincloseproximitytotheshelfedge.

Throughtime,astheshelfedgemigratedseaward,depositionbeganwithachanneldominated
deepwatersystem(IQI1&2),andprogressedthroughaslump/debrisflowdominateddeepwater
system(IQI3,theprincipalreservoir)toatideandwavedominatedshallowwatersystem.
Compositionalandtexturalsimilaritiesbetweenthedeepwaterfaciesresultinsimilarlogmotifs.
Furthermore,thesedepositionalfaciesarenotreadilyapparentasdistinctseismicfacies.Thisstudy
hasresultedinsevendefinedreservoirunitswithintheIQI.

Theresultofthisstudydoesnotnecessarilyapplystrictlytootherfields,butitshowsclearlythatthe
IntraQuaIboesandpackageisnotonehomogenouspackage.Itcautionsagainstpositionsthat
placehighemphasisoncontinuityofseismiccharacterindelineatingstratalsurfaces.Andbecause
thesandsareofdeepwaterorigin,ithasimplicationsfordeepwaterexplorationactivity.

ThefourlocalmembersoftheAgbadaformationarenotpresenteverywhereinthesoutheast
offshore.Theydisappearnorthwardsandwestwards.TheyareabsentinNgoField,whichisa
simplerolloverdownthrowntoChevron'sTubuField.ItisnotcleariftheyarepresentinAshland's
OkworiSouthalthoughoneofthemhasbeenreportedinOkpoho,inShell'sOML71.Eveninthe
veryheartofMobil'sconcessions,twoorthreemembersaresometimesabsent.Accordingtoa
publishedpaperbyOkonkwoetal,theOsoFieldisareservoirwithintheBiafra.Noneofthewells
hadencounteredeithertheRubblebedortheD1sand.AndtheQuaIboeisnotproductivehere.

Thisisveryinstructiveasfarasoilexplorationisconcerned.InEquatorialGuinea,noneofthewells
drilledoutsidethelimitsoftheQuaIboememberhavefoundoil.Bythesamelogic,thevery
encounterofIQIin1995leadtotheZafirodiscoverywhichinturnhelpedtodrawtheextentofthe
sequenceasfarasthepresentday"Deltatoe".

TheeventshappeninginthesoutheastoffshoreNigerDeltacompelourattention.TheAmenam
discoveryin1990cameatatimewhenthethinkingintheNigerianoilindustrywasthattherewere
noelephantstobediscoveredanymore."TheAmenamdiscoveryexplodedamyth,"saidahigh
rankingexecutiveofNAPE,thelocalaffiliateoftheAAPG.Whiletherehaven'tbeenanythingas
profoundasthatsincethen,arashofdiscoveriesinthelastthreeyearshaspointedupthiscorner
asanincreasinglyimportantexplorationarea.

What'smore,thefewpublishedseismicprofilesinthesoutheasternoffshore,aswellitsgenetic
originasevidencedfromtheHermancepaper,haveindicatedthatthisisthebestlaboratorywe
havefortheunderstandingofthedeepwaterconcessions.

Copyright1997Oil&GasJournal.AllRightsReserved.

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Copy right 20072016 P ennWell Corporat ion, Tuls a, OK . A ll Right s Res erv ed. Terms and
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