Abstract
The Aptian Serj Formation has been considered of significant interest for oil and gas exploration, in the Central Tunisia, since the 1960s. The predominant structural trapping styles for hydrocarbons, within the area, involve fault-bounded anticlines and paleo-horst structures. 2D seismic mapping over the area of interest highlights numerous structures near the top Aptian. These latters are predominantly associated with salt tectonics, which might explain the sporadic development of reefal carbonates facies that prevailed during the Aptian. The oil has been generated from the excellent Albian Fahdene source rock that charges the underlying Serj reservoir by simple pressure differential (downward migration) and/or source/reservoir juxtaposition. Based on core and well log analysis, the Aptian carbonate reservoirs are observed to typically develop poor pore systems with porosity variations closely related to the thickness of the overburden (burial) and the intensity of mesogenetic alteration, such as recrystallization and early cementation. Above a reactive salt diaper, the Aptian Serj carbonates show a significant increase in reservoir parameters due to diagenetic processes, in particular dissolution and dolomitization, especially near unconformities. The evidence of substantial oil rates from some wells provide evidence of the contribution coming from the open fractures into the flow. Despite the poor reservoir characteristics, substantial oil rates have been recorded in several wells without any reservoir stimulation. This new insight into the Aptian/Albian play has been used to narrow down the exploration risk of this play in central Tunisia and particularly in the Pelagian Basin.
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Harzali, M., Troudi, H. (2022). New Insight on the Hydrocarbon Prospectivity of the Aptian-Albian Play in Central Tunisia. In: Meghraoui, M., et al. Advances in Geophysics, Tectonics and Petroleum Geosciences. CAJG 2019. Advances in Science, Technology & Innovation. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-73026-0_139
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