Reservoir characterization and petroleum geology at esh el mallaha field, southern gulf of Suez, Egypt

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

Geology Department, Faculty of Science, Al-Azhar University, Nasr City, Cairo, 11884, Egypt

Abstract

Reservoir quality assessment, pointing to possible capacities for holding hydrocarbons, is crucial during exploration-phases of petroleum. This investigation closely examines the petrophysical properties of Nubia-Sandstone Formation upon performing well-log analysis of the available well-log data located at West Esh El Mallaha area, southern part of the Gulf of Suez, Egypt. It is an attempt to reveal the hydrocarbon potentialities within Paleozoic reservoirs of the area. Nubia Formation represents an important reservoir in the Gulf of Suez province with at least 15% of hydrocarbon production potential. Well-log analysis, in means of defining the petrophysical properties (shale-volume, porosity, and water-saturation), of Nubia intervals was an essential objective, in this study, to determine the reservoir quality and hydrocarbon potential capacity of reservoirs in the area. The petrophysical properties have been vertically and laterally illustrated to point out to the ultimate distribution of characteristics within the area. 1D-basin modeling approach was also performed, in this study, to retrieve the geohistory of the area confirming charging of hydrocarbons from intervals of source-prone rocks to reservoir-zones. It has been revealed that Nubia Formation is composed of sandstones interbedded with shales. It possesses a net pay reaching up to 50 feet (from lowest meaningful-value of 1 foot to highest value of 50 feet); with considerable effective porosities up to 20 %. It has been obvious that the southeastern-part of the area features good quality petrophysical characteristics capable of storing and transmitting hydrocarbons within Nubia Formation, leading to big discoveries, at the southern-part of the Gulf of Suez.

Keywords

Main Subjects

References

1]        Bosworth W, Huchon P, McClay K. The Red Sea and Gulf of Aden Basins. J African Earth Sci. 2005;43(1–3):334–78.
[2]       El Nady MM, Ramadan FS, Hammad MM, Lotfy NM. Evaluation of organic matters, hydrocarbon potential and thermal maturity of source rocks based on geochemical and statistical methods: Case study of source rocks in Ras Gharib oilfield, central Gulf of Suez, Egypt. Egypt J Pet. 2015;24(2):203–11.
[3]       Schlumberger. Well evaluation conference. Egypt. Schlumberger & EGPC; 1995.
[4]       Moustafa AR. Controls on the geometry of transfer zones in the Suez rift and northwest Red Sea: Implications for the structural geometry of rift systems. Am Assoc Pet Geol Bull. 2002;86(6):979–1002.
[5]       Patton TL, Moustafa AR, Nelson RA, Abdine SA. Tectonic evolution and structural setting of the Suez Rift. Inter Rift basins. 1994;9–55.
[6]       Abd El-Naby AIM, Ghanem H, Boukhary M, Abd El-Aal MH, Lüning S, Kuss J. Sequence-stratigraphic interpretation of structurally controlled deposition: Middle Miocene Kareem Formation, southwestern Gulf of Suez, Egypt. GeoArabia. 2010;15(3):129–50.
[7]       Peijs J, Bevan TG, Piombino JT. The Gulf of Suez rift basin. In: Regional geology and tectonics: phanerozoic rift systems and sedimentary basins. Elsevier; 2012. p. 164–94.
[8]       Alsharhan AS, Salah MG. Lithostratigraphy, sedimentology and hydrocarbon habitat of the pre-Cenomanian Nubian Sandstone in the Gulf of Suez Oil Province, Egypt. GeoArabia. 1997;2(4):385–400.
[9]       Said R. The Geology of Egypt. A.A.Balkema, Rotterdam; 1990. 729 p.
[10]    Alsharhan AS. Petroleum geology and potential hydrocarbon plays in the Gulf of Suez rift basin, Egypt. Am Assoc Pet Geol Bull. 2003;87(1):143–80.
[11]    Bosworth W. A high-strain rift model for the southern Gulf of Suez (Egypt). In: Lambiase JJ, editor. Hydrocarbon habitat in rift basins. Geological Society Special Publication; 1995. p. 75–102.
[12]    Younes AI, Engelder T, Bosworth W. Fracture distribution in faulted basement blocks: Gulf of Suez, Egypt. In: COWARD MP, DALTABAN TS, JOHNSON H, editors. Structural geology in reservoir characterization. Geological Society, London, Special Publications; 1998. p. 167–90.
[13]    Aly SA, Ewida HF, Shebl A, Nasr IA. Well log analysis and oil potentialities of the Lower Cretaceous Nubia Sandstones, West Esh El Mallaha Oilfield, Southern Gulf of Suez, Egypt. Egypt J Pure Appl Sci. 2015;53(2):1–11.
[14]    Sarhan MA, Basal AMK. Evaluation of Nubia sandstone reservoir as inferred from well logging data interpretation for Rabeh East-25 well, Southwest Gulf of suez, Egypt. J African Earth Sci. 2019;155:124–36.
[15]    El-Gendy N, Barakat M, Abdallah H. Reservoir assessment of the Nubian sandstone reservoir in South Central Gulf of Suez, Egypt. J African Earth Sci. 2017;129:596–609.
[16]    Attia I, Helal I, El Dakhakhny A, Aly SA. Using sequence stratigraphic approaches in a highly tectonic area: Case study - Nubia (A) sandstone in southwestern Gulf of Suez, Egypt. J African Earth Sci. 2017;136:10–21.
[17]    Abd El-Gawad EA, Abdelwahhab MA, Bekiet MH, Noah AZ, ElSayed NA, Fouda AEE. Static reservoir modeling of El Wastani Formation, for justifying development plans, using 2D seismic and well log data in Scarab field, offshore Nile Delta, Egypt. J African Earth Sci. 2019;158:103546. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jafrearsci.2019.103546
[18]    Abdelwahhab MA, Raef A. Integrated reservoir and basin modeling in understanding the petroleum system and evaluating prospects: The Cenomanian reservoir, Bahariya Formation, at Falak Field, Shushan Basin, Western Desert, Egypt. J Pet Sci Eng. 2020;189:107023. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.petrol.2020.107023
[19]    Elatrash AM, Abdelwahhab MA, Wanas HA, El‑Naggar SI, Elshayeb HM. Multi‑disciplinary approach to sedimentary facies analysis of Messinian Salinity Crisis tectono‑sequences (South‑Mansoura Area, Nile Delta): Incised‑valley fill geological model reconstruction and petroleum geology–reservoir element delineation. J Pet Explor Prod Technol. 2021a;11(4):1643–1666. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13202-021-01124-2
[20]    Elatrash AM, Abdelwahhab MA, Wanas HA, El-Naggar SI, Elshayeb HM. Well log-aided source rock potential, basin modeling, and seismic attributes: Petroleum geology case study of Pliocene discovery at South Mansoura Area (Nile Delta). Arab J Geosci. 2021b;14(869). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12517-021-07285-y
[21]    Abdelwahhab MA, Ali EH, Abdelhafez NA. Petroleum system analysis-conjoined 3D-static reservoir modeling in a 3-way and 4-way dip closure setting: Insights into petroleum geology of fluvio-marine deposits at BED-2 Field (Western Desert, Egypt). Petroleum. 2021. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.petlm.2021.06.001
[22]    Barakat MK, El-Gendy NH, El-Bastawesy MA. Structural modeling of the Alam EL-Bueib Formation in the jade oil field, Western Desert, Egypt. J African Earth Sci. 2019;156:168–77.
[23]    Gawad EA, Fathy M, Reda M, Ewida H. Petroleum geology: 3D reservoir modelling in the central Gulf of Suez, Egypt, to estimate the hydrocarbon possibility via petrophysical analysis and seismic data interpretation. Geol J. 2021 Aug 19;1–14. https://doi.org/10.1002/gj.4241
[24]    Othman AAA, Fathy M, Othman M, Khalil M. 3D static modeling of the Nubia Sandstone reservoir, gamma offshore field, southwestern part of the Gulf of Suez, Egypt. J African Earth Sci. 2021;177:104160.
[25]    Abd El-Hady MA, Hamed TA, Abdelwahhab MA. A new hydrocarbon prospect determination through subsurface and petrophysical evaluation of Abu Roash “G” Member in Abu Sennan area, North Western Desert, Egypt. Nat Sci. 2014;12(11 (No:30)):199–218. 10.7537/marsnsj121114.30
[26]    Moustafa AR, Fouda HG. Gebel Sufr El Dara accommodation zone, southwestern part of the Suez rift. Middle East Res Center, Ain Shams Univ Earth Sci Ser. 1988;2:227–39.
[27]    Kerdany M, Cherif O. Mesozoic. In: Said R, editor. Geology of Egypt. Balkema/ Rotterdam/Brookfield; 1990. p. 407–38.
[28]    El Sheikh M, Aly H, Imperatore R. Ashrafi field–Gulf of Suez: A case history of exploration and development in a complex geological setting. In: Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation 14th EGPC Exploration and Production Conference Cairo, Egypt. 1998. p. 322–37.
[29]    Catuneanu O, Khalifa MA, Wanas HA. Sequence stratigraphy of the Lower Cenomanian Bahariya Formation, Bahariya Oasis, Western Desert, Egypt. Sediment Geol. 2006;190:121–37.
[30]    El Beialy SY, Head MJ, El Atfy HS. Palynology of the Mid-Cretaceous Malha and Galala formations, Gebel El Minshera, North Sinai, Egypt. Palaios. 2010;25(8):517–26.
[31]    Afifi AS, Moustafa AR, Helmy HM. Fault block rotation and footwall erosion in the southern Suez rift: Implications for hydrocarbon exploration. Mar Pet Geol. 2016 Sep 1;76:377–96.
[32]    Asquith G, Gibson C. Basic Well log analysis for geologists. The American Association of Petroleum Geologists; 1982.
[33]    Dewan JT. Essentials of modern open-hole log interpretation. PennWell Publications; 1983. 361 p.
[34]    Atlas D. Log interpretation charts: Houston. Dresser Industries. Inc.; 1979. 107 p.
[35      Worthington PF. The evolution of shaly-sand concepts in reservoir evaluation. Log Anal. 1985;26(1):23-40.
[36]    Darling T. Well logging and formation evaluation. Elsevier Inc.; 2005.
[37]    Hantschel T, Kauerauf AI. Fundamentals of basin and petroleum systems modeling. Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg; 2009.
[38]    Dembicki Jr. H. Basin modeling. In: Dembicki Jr. H, editor. Practical petroleum geochemistry for exploration and production. Elsevier Inc.; 2017. p. 273–308.
[39]    Sweeney JJ, Burnham AK. Evaluation of a simple model of vitrinite reflectance based on chemical kinetics. Am Assoc Pet Geol Bull. 1990;74:1559–70.
[40]        Selley RC, Sonnenberg SA. Elements of petroleum geology. 3rd ed. Elsevier Inc.; 2015. 507 p. 

Files

Share

How to cite

Statistics