Hydrocarbon Resources of the Chukchi Sea Coastal Shelf Zone

Hydrocarbon Resources of the Chukchi Sea Coastal Shelf Zone – the Chukchi Sea includes two petroleum basins: the North Chukotka Petroleum Basin and the South Chukotka Petroleum Basin located to the northeast and southeast of the Wrangel Island in hard-to-access areas with extreme ice conditions. The South Chukotka Petroleum Basin is composed of volcanic-alluvial Cretaceous-Paleogene rock formations up to 4–5 km thick. The oil and gas potential of the South Chukotka Petroleum Basin is due to a high possibility of oil and gas generation and accumulation in its deeply submerged central part. The North Chukotka Petroleum Basin is formed in the extensive sublatitudinal downwarping of the southern slope of the hyperborean platform. The North Chukotka Petroleum Basin contains carbonate-terrigenous Paleozoic, Mesozoic, and Cenozoic deposits 4–12 km thick. The eastern part of the North Chukotka Petroleum Basin adjoins the Alaska North Slope Basin with its proven oil and gas reserves, which...