TY - JOUR
T1 - Modelling of hydrocarbon generation in the Cenozoic Song Hong Basin, Vietnam
T2 - A highly prospective basin
AU - Nielsen, L.H.
AU - Mathiesen, A.
AU - Bidstrup, T.
AU - Vejbæk, O.V.
AU - Dien, P.T.
AU - Tiem, P.V.
N1 - Funding Information:
The results presented herein were obtained from an ongoing research project on the development and hydrocarbon potential of the Song Hong Basin. The project is carried out by the Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland (GEUS) together with the Vietnam Petroleum Institute, a subsidiary of the state-owned Vietnam Oil and Gas Corporation (PetroVietnam). The Danish Energy Agency and Danida (Danish International Development Assistance) are thanked for funding the project. PetroVietnam and Vietnam Petroleum Institute provided data, manpower, and support, and are thanked for permission to publish the results. The project is carried out under the auspices of CCOP (Coordinating Committee for Coastal and Offshore Geoscience Programmes in East and Southeast Asia) and the technical secretariat in Bangkok is thanked for support. The two referees P. Abolins and D. Waples are thanked for constructive reviews.
PY - 1999/2
Y1 - 1999/2
N2 - The Cenozoic Song Hong Basin, situated on the northern part of the Vietnamese shelf, has been only sporadically explored for hydrocarbons. A review of the results of the exploration efforts so far shows that the distribution of potential source rocks and their time of hydrocarbon generation are the critical risks for finding commercial amounts of hydrocarbons. In the Song Hong Basin, including the Hanoi Trough, the rocks most likely to have source potential are: (1) oil-prone Eocene-Lower Oligocene lacustrine mudstones and coals, (2) oil- and gas-prone Middle Miocene coal beds, (3) gas-prone Upper Oligocene-Lower Miocene coals, and (4) gas- and oil-prone Miocene marine mudstones. To assess the time of hydrocarbon generation from these units, relative to the formation of traps, the generation history was modelled at 32 well and pseudo-well locations. The modelling demonstrates that the two first-mentioned source rock units are especially important. In the northern and northeastern part of the basin and along its western margin traps may have been charged by Eocene-Lower Oligocene source rocks. In the Hanoi Trough, the excellent Middle Miocene coal beds have probably generated hydrocarbons within the last few million years. Thus the huge and still underexplored Song Hong Basin provides attractive areas for further exploration.
AB - The Cenozoic Song Hong Basin, situated on the northern part of the Vietnamese shelf, has been only sporadically explored for hydrocarbons. A review of the results of the exploration efforts so far shows that the distribution of potential source rocks and their time of hydrocarbon generation are the critical risks for finding commercial amounts of hydrocarbons. In the Song Hong Basin, including the Hanoi Trough, the rocks most likely to have source potential are: (1) oil-prone Eocene-Lower Oligocene lacustrine mudstones and coals, (2) oil- and gas-prone Middle Miocene coal beds, (3) gas-prone Upper Oligocene-Lower Miocene coals, and (4) gas- and oil-prone Miocene marine mudstones. To assess the time of hydrocarbon generation from these units, relative to the formation of traps, the generation history was modelled at 32 well and pseudo-well locations. The modelling demonstrates that the two first-mentioned source rock units are especially important. In the northern and northeastern part of the basin and along its western margin traps may have been charged by Eocene-Lower Oligocene source rocks. In the Hanoi Trough, the excellent Middle Miocene coal beds have probably generated hydrocarbons within the last few million years. Thus the huge and still underexplored Song Hong Basin provides attractive areas for further exploration.
KW - Vietnam, Petroleum geology
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=0033041527&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/S0743-9547(98)00063-4
DO - 10.1016/S0743-9547(98)00063-4
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:0033041527
VL - 17
SP - 269
EP - 294
JO - Journal of Asian Earth Sciences
JF - Journal of Asian Earth Sciences
SN - 1367-9120
IS - 1-2
ER -