Marcio Rocha Mello¹

(1) Analytical Solutions Ltda/ Petroleum & Environmental Geo-Services Ltda, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

ABSTRACT: Petroleum Systems of the Brazilian Marginal Basins - An Overview

The Brazilian South Atlantic basins have developed into one of the most active regions for petroleum exploration in the last three years. The petroleum industry interest has resulted from the discovery of numerous giant oil fields in the area, along both the opening of industry in the country and the increase in the rate of permitting in deep and ultradeep waters. The use of the petroleum systems concept provides an effective means of classifying and characterizing the diversity of the systems as well as a means to aid in the selection of appropriate exploration targets. An examination of Campos, Espírito Santo, Sergipe and Potiguar basins provides some of the best examples of how petroleum systems evolve through time with respect to both their levels of certainty, migration pathway, and their geographic and stratigraphic limits. For example, vertical migration appears to dominate in Campos and South of Espírito Santo basins, with normal faults networks, salt windows and listric faults providing a short distance migration pathway where deepwater turbidite sandstones are charged from lacustrine source rocks. Differences are, however, clear when the Sergipe and Potiguar basins are examined. In the these basins, normal faults networks, linked with major structural trends provide a long distance migration pathway, homoclinal up where shallow water sands are charged from marine source rocks.

AAPG Search and Discovery Article #90906©2001 AAPG Annual Convention, Denver, Colorado