Lyell Collection
Geological Society, London, Special Publications
Lyell Centre  |   Lyell Collection  |   Subscriptions   |   Geological Society  |   Email alerts  |   Online bookshop  |   Help

Keywords:
Author:
Advanced search>>
This Article
Right arrow Full Text (PDF)
Right arrow References
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Right arrow Citation Map
Services
Right arrow Email this article to a friend
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrow Request Permissions
Citing Articles
Right arrow Citing Articles via HighWire
Right arrow Citing Articles via Google Scholar
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Smewing, J. D.
Right arrow Articles by Ul-Haq, N.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
GeoRef
Right arrow GeoRef Citation
Geological Society, London, Special Publications; 2002; v. 195; p. 273-299;
DOI: 10.1144/GSL.SP.2002.195.01.15
© 2002 Geological Society of London

Sequence stratigraphy of the southern Kirthar Fold Belt and Middle Indus Basin, Pakistan

John D. Smewing1, John Warburton2,5, Tim Daley3, Philip Copestake4 & Nazir Ul-Haq2

1 Earth Resources Ltd, Innovation Centre, Singleton Park, Swansea SA2 8PP UK erl{at}clara.co.uk
2 LASMO Oil Pakistan Ltd, 5th Floor, The Forum, Khayaban-e-Jami, Clifton, Karachi-75600, Pakistan
3 LASMO Venezuela BV, Avenue Francisco de Miranda, Centre Lido, Torre E, Piso 11, El Rosal, Caracas 1060, Venezuela
4 IHS Energy Group, Enterprise House, Cirencester Road, Ilsom, Tetbury GL8 8RX, UK
5 ROC Oil Company Ltd, 100 William Street, Sydney, NSW 2011, Australia

The southern Kirthar Fold Belt (KFB) and the contiguous Middle Indus Basin (MIB) constitute a major oil and gas province on the southern Pakistan foreland. In the Middle Indus Basin, gas is reservoired in Early Cretaceous marginal marine sandstones sealed by Paleocene shales. Reservoir quality of the Early Cretaceous sediments deteriorates towards the fold belt, but recent discoveries of gas in Upper Cretaceous sandstones sealed by Paleocene shales have highlighted its potential. To understand better the petroleum systems of this region and provide a potential correlation scheme for comparison with other areas of the country, a sequence stratigraphic interpretation was carried out on the Jurassic to Recent sediments of the KFB and MIB. On the basis of outcrop and well data, 23 depositional sequences have been identified: five in the Jurassic units, 10 in the Cretaceous units and eight in the Tertiary units. Sequence boundaries have been defined according to the Exxon method of identifying unconformities and their correlative conformities. However, equal importance has been given to indentifying the potentially more chronostratigraphically significant maximum flooding surfaces between these sequence boundaries so as to define accurately the component systems tracts of each sequence. The depositional systems are described in terms of their relationship to the existing lithostratigraphic framework and interpreted in terms of sedimentary responses to external (eustatic) or local (tectonic) events. Notwithstanding the presence of a eustatic signature on some sequences, the majority appear to be tectonically driven and can be related to plate margin events affecting the NW margin of the Indo-Pakistan Plate during its rift-drift-collision history.





This article has been cited by other articles:


Home page
 Geological Society, London, Special PublicationsHome page
T. Daley and Z. Alam
Seismic stratigraphy of the offshore Indus Basin
Geological Society, London, Special Publications, 2002; 195: 259 - 271.
[Abstract] [PDF]