The Middle Jurassic coaly-sourced petroleum system in the Danish North Sea – An overlooked exploration target?

Plays relying on the prolific Upper Jurassic – lowermost Cretaceous marine shales will continue to be the primary exploration targets in the North Sea but additional efficient petroleum systems in a mature oil province, such as the North Sea, are intriguing as they may constitute overlooked exploration potential. The coaly Middle Jurassic charged Triassic and Jurassic sandstone plays in the greater North Sea have shown to be economic viable with significant resources, such as the Culzean Field. Hence, the known coaly hydrocarbon occurrences and the shows in Middle Jurassic rocks demonstrate that the Middle Jurassic petroleum system has a regional distribution in Danish Central Graben which is encouraging for future exploration opportunities.