Offshore Brazil Santos Basin Exploration Potential From Recently Acquired Seismic Data

Abstract

The deep and ultradeep water regions offshore east Brazil is <br>increasingly attracting attention from exploration and <br>production companies. Brazil hydrocarbon production is <br>derived mainly from the giant deepwater fields of the <br>Campos Basin. By contrast, the deepwater regions of the, <br>adjacent to the south, Santos Basin have remained largely <br>under-explored. In actuality, Santos Basin is one of the <br>largest under-explored basins of the world. In the last two <br>decades, there have been several significant discoveries in the <br>southern portion of Santos Basin mainly on carbonate <br>reservoirs. Recently in 1999 a significant discovery occurred <br>on Upper Cretaceous turbidite reservoirs in deepwater. This <br>paper outlines the encouraging hydrocarbon potential of the <br>deepwater realm of Santos Basin by utilizing a recently <br>acquired, processed and interpreted 2D dataset which has <br>revealed numerous, largely untested, play types. These plays <br>include both structural and stratigraphic components. Saltrelated<br> large 4-way closures, including faulted and unfaulted <br>turtle structures and drapes over salt have been identified <br>along with sub-unconformity traps. All these identified play <br>types have examples with associated amplitude anomalies, <br>which are widespread throughout the basin, at varying <br>stratigraphic and structural levels.