Seismic stratigraphic patterns and characterization of deepwater reservoirs of the Mundaú sub-basin, Brazilian Equatorial Margin

Abstract In recent years, the Brazilian Equatorial Margin has drawn attention due to its similarity to areas with new hydrocarbon discoveries in the African conjugated margin, and in French Guiana. However, studies on the tectonic regimes associated with transform margins and their evolution, structures, and petroleum potential are still lacking due to the geological complexity of this region. To address this knowledge gap, research has been done to better understand the geological structures, as well as to identify potential hydrocarbon accumulations in the deepwater Ceara Basin. To achieve this, we performed an integrated interpretation of a large 2D seismic data, new exploratory borehole data, as well as older well data with revised biostratigraphy. This data analysis refines the basin architecture and the Cretaceous-Paleocene tectonic evolution, including implications for hydrocarbon prospectivity in the Ceara Basin deepwater. 2D seismic interpretation was performed using modern concepts of continental break-up. To accomplish this, the transition of continental-oceanic crust was taken into account for restoration of the sediments of the rift stage in the basin. The analysis also identifies potential hydrocarbon accumulations in turbiditic reservoirs and presents new insights about the dimensions of the underlying rift features situated in the continental slope. The results reveal a high potential for drift sequences in deepwater where the Late Albian-Early Cenomanian-Turonian sediments reach thicknesses of approximately 3048–4894 m. Moreover, this research shows evidence of Cretaceous to Paleocene magmatism, indicated by the well-imaged volcanoes and associated sills in the seismic data. This analysis indicates that the Mundau sub-basin can be classified as a volcanic passive margin that was developed during the oblique dextral separation between South America and Africa. The variety of stratigraphic and structural features developed through the Cretaceous history of the Mundau sub-basin offers a variety of potential hydrocarbon traps and plays in a number of rift and post-rift sequences.