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Reinga Block Offer (Closed 18th August 2010)
Reinga Block Offer
The Reinga Basin, northwest of New Zealand, covers an area of more than 150,000 km2 within the legally defined New Zealand Exclusive Economic Zone and Extended Continental Shelf. A large part of it is prospective for oil and gas and some of it is highly prospective. This conclusion is based on the interpretation of newly acquired seismic reflection data, a surface slick survey, and knowledge of the geology in the adjacent and contiguous regions of Northland and the productive Taranaki Basin.
Some 105,230 km2 over the basin are being offered by the Crown in six blocks which are immediately north-west of the Northland blocks already on offer.
The eastern boundary of the Reinga Basin is the west coast of the Northland peninsula and to the southeast it adjoins the Northland Basin. It extends northwest for 500 km, with water depths typically in the range 1,750-2,000m, rising locally at ridges to between 500 and 1,500m. At the northern end of the basin (Wanganella Ridge) water depths are as shallow as 250m.
The Reinga Basin contains up to 7 km of Mesozoic and Cenozoic sedimentary rocks and appears to have all elements of an active petroleum system. It is one of the most prospective frontier basins in the New Zealand region with large areas of the sedimentary succession lying within the oil generation window. This sequence is similar to the oil and gas producing Taranaki Basin.
The deepest sediment is related to the Permian-Cretaceous deposition on the margin of the Gondwana Supercontinent where potential source rocks of coaly sediments of the Murihiku Supergroup were deposited.
These were followed by late Cretaceous to Eocene marginal marine coaly deposits and marine shales. They provide both source rocks and reservoir rocks in a number of clastic depositional settings. Both the Turi and the Waipawa Formations are rich and modeling suggests that volumes of expelled oil and gas from a 100 m-thick interval of source rock are up to 7.5 mmbbl/km2 of oil and over 60 bcf/km2 of gas.
Satellite observed sea-surface slicks are generally distributed in the northeast and southwest sectors of the Reinga Basin and there is a broad correlation with the zones of Neogene deformation and faulting where fluid expulsion locations, leakage zones, and potential hydrocarbon expulsion pathways and complexes are indicated on the seismic data.Many structural and stratigraphic leads have been identified. They include rifted basins, horst blocks, reef carbonates, deep water channels, and submarine fans.
As this is a virgin frontier basin the major risks relate largely to the low level of geological knowledge so far determined for the basin. There are suitable structures and traps which warrant further, more detailed evaluation. Slick surveys and seismic data suggest seeps are present in many areas. Most importantly the area is geologically contiguous with the hydrocarbon producing Taranaki Basin. The results from the 2009 survey indicate the Reinga Basin is prospective for oil and gas and that all elements required for a working petroleum system are present over a large area.
To request a free copy of the supplementary data pack please email crown.minerals@med.govt.nz
For more detailed information please check out the current permits page and technical database.
Joint Venture with CGGVeritas
The Reinga Survey was a joint venture between Crown Minerals and CGGVeritas. This enabled a survey with greater coverage to be made than Crown Minerals would normally have acquired. The joint agreement allows for Crown Minerals to release selected lines while the remainder of the survey is available from CGGVeritas on commercial terms. Enquiries about the availability of the additional lines should be directed to Ian Edwards at CGGVeritas.
CGGVeritas contact: | |
| Ian T. Edwards Senior Vice President CGGVeritas Asia Pacific Region Data Library SINGAPORE | Tel : +65 6723 5606 Mobile : +65 9199 6898 Fax : +65 6723 5550 |
| ian.edwards@cggveritas.com | Tel. UK: +44 (0) 1293 683032 Mobile UK: +44 (0) 7803 661 732 |
