ABSTRACT: The Reservoir Geology and Geophysics of the Hibernia Field, Offshore Newfoundland
T. J. Hurley, R. D. Kreisa, G. G. Taylor, W. R. L. Yates
The Hibernia field is located 315 km (195 mi) east of St. John's, Newfoundland. The field was discovered in 1979. Pre-production investment, which includes the construction of a concrete gravity base structure (GBS), is currently estimated at approximately $5 billion Canadian. The plateau production rate is expected to average 17,480 m3/day (110,000 b/day). To date, there is no hydrocarbon production from offshore eastern Canada.
Hibernia field is located in the northwest sector of the rifted Jeanne d'Arc basin. The integrated geological and geophysical interpretation of the field is based upon the results of 10 wells and 460 km2 (177 mi2) of three-dimensional seismic data. The trap, as seismically defined, is an arcuate anticline created by rollover into the basin-bounding Murre fault. A complex system of faults divides the structure into numerous horsts and grabens. An estimated recoverable resource of 83 million m3 (525 million bbl) occurs in two Lower Cretaceous sandstone reservoirs.
Berriasian- to Valanginian-age Hibernia sandstones are the primary reservoirs occurring at an average drill depth of 3720 m (12,200 ft). Average porosity is 16%; permeability ranges up to 2 d. Sedimentological interpretation of core indicates that the dominant reservoir facies was deposited as high bed-load channels in a fluvially dominated deltaic complex. Reservoir sandstones are interpreted to be elongated and relatively continuous in a southwest-northeast direction. Concurrent crestal gas injection and downdip water injection will be used to maximize recovery.
Barremian- to Albian-age Ben Nevis/Avalon sandstones are the secondary reservoirs and occur at an average drill depth of 2345 m (7700 ft). Core studies indicate deposition within transgressive shoreface and offshore shallow-marine environments. Thin bed stratigraphy predominates in this reservoir. The extent of lateral and vertical continuity is uncertain due to zones of bioturbation and calcite cementation.
AAPG Search and Discovery Article #91000©1990 AAPG Conference-Giant Oil and Gas Fields of the Decade 1978-1988 Conference, Stavanger, Norway, September 9-12, 1990