--> ABSTRACT: Reservoir Facies within the Deepwater Sandstones of the Falcon Field – Western Gulf of Mexico, by Abdulah, Ken, Kim Doud, Myron Cook, David Keller, Mark Bengtson, Terry Jensen, Bevan Alwin; #90026 (2004)

Datapages, Inc.Print this page

Abdulah, Ken1, Kim Doud1, Myron Cook1, David Keller1, Mark Bengtson1, Terry Jensen1, Bevan Alwin1
(1)Pioneer Natural Resources, Irving, TX

ABSTRACT: Reservoir Facies within the Deepwater Sandstones of the Falcon Field – Western Gulf of Mexico

The Falcon Gas Field, discovered in the western Gulf of Mexico in 2001, lies 100 miles east of Corpus Christi within the East Breaks Blocks 579 and 623. Amplitude extractions, horizon slices and seismic facies analyses indicate that the reservoir interval is made up of channel-levee facies associated with a well-developed, NNW-SSE trending Middle Miocene channel complex. Well-log data, including dipmeter and FMI logs, support this interpretation and full-diameter core data show an abundance of fine-grained sandstones dominated by climbing ripples. The sandstones are highly laminated with a high net to gross ratio, and excellent permeability. The channel-levee system was influenced in a predictable fashion by folds and faults that created localized, subtle relief. The response of the channel-levee system to changes in local relief included alteration of channel course, thinning and thickening of levee deposits, and channel entrenchment. Channel morphology can be seen to vary from straight channels, with symmetric levees, to meandering channels with asymmetric levees that were later modified by normal faulting and rotational slumps. However, with the exception of sand-prone channel-margin slumps, the channel within the Falcon Field appears to be mud-filled. Gas accumulations occur within combination structural/stratigraphic traps, and are characterized by high-amplitude, low impedance, seismic anomalies with gas/water contacts and associated flat spots.

AAPG Search and Discovery Article #90026©2004 AAPG Annual Meeting, Dallas, Texas, April 18-21, 2004.