--> Abstract: Origin of Oil in the Gulf of Mexico: Exploration and Exploitation Significance, by J. Zumberge, H. Illich, C. Pratsch, N. Cameron, J. Brooks, and S. Brown; #90923 (1999)

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ZUMBERGE, JOHN, HAROLD ILLICH, CHRIS PRATSCH, NICK CAMERON, JIM BROOKS, and STEPHEN BROWN, GeoMark Research, Houston,TX

Abstract: Origin of Oil in the Gulf of Mexico: Exploration and Exploitation Significance

Knowledge of the number and nature of petroleum systems present in the greater Gulf of Mexico Basin is an important "first issue" in producing more accurate predictive solutions for exploration and production activities.The assembly, analysis, and digital storage of a large oil geochemical data set for the region provide an opportunity to build or continue to develop an increasingly more sophisticated understanding of hydrocarbon genesis in the basin. The different genetic oil families relate to variations in oil quality (e.g., %S, ppm metals,API gravity) in various parts of the basin.

Oils believed to have been derived from Tertiary and Cretaceous units usually possess geochemical characteristics associated with shale-rich sources. Oils derived from Jurassic units more characteristically possess compositions compatible with carbonate- or marl- rich sources. Tertiary, Cretaceous and Jurassic-sourced oils occur in the shelf and deep-water areas of the northern offshore Gulf of Mexico. Oils obtained by piston core from surface seeps tend to have compositions that are most closely correlative to Jurassic oils from southeastern Mexico. Many deepwater and "sub-salt" oils can be interpreted to be compositionally intermediate between Jurassic-derived oils (carbonate-marl) and Cretaceous oils from shales.

AAPG Search and Discovery Article #90923@1999 International Conference and Exhibition, Birmingham, England