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Origin of Gas of Giant Gas Fields of North of West SiberiaTo Get Articles please send E-mail to:
"James Clarke" <jamesclarke@erols.com>
together, in 2000, the seven leading majors
– LUKoil, Yukos, SNG, TNK,
Tatneft, SIBNEFT and Rosneft
– accounted
for over 64 percent of Russia's explored oil
reserves, nearly 75 percent of oil well
stock, over 72 percent of oil production,
nearly 54 percent of refinery runs and
almost 71 percent of total crude oil
exports to the "far abroad."Origin of Gas of Giant Gas Fields of North of West Siberia
Internet Geology News Letter No. 109, August 6, 2001The north of West Siberia is an extremely important gas-producing region, playing a substantial role in the energy balance of the world. It holds first place in the world in abundance of reserves, and in number of unique, giant, and large fields. Gas resources as of 1993 were assessed at 100 trillion cubic meters (3,500 tcf) and proved reserves of commercial catagories at 50 trillion cubic meters (1,750 tcf).
All these gas pools within the thick (up to 2000 m) Cretaceous Neocomian-Cenomanian oil-gas complex are in its upper part in Cenomanian sediments at depth of 400 to 1200 m directly beneath the Turonian-Paleogene regional clay seal. They occur at crests of highs that have closures of 100-200 m and more. The crest areas of these highs are large at 500 to 4000 sq km.
The continental sand-silt Cenomanian complex is a hydrodynamic unit. The pools have a massive-blanket character and have practically horizontal gas-water contacts. The gas is 99 percent methane and contains up to 0.3 percent ethane, propane, and butane. Traces of condensate are present. Oil rings have been found in some fields; this oil is heavy, viscous, and contains some sulfur.
During the time from the Valanginian to the Cenomanian the north of West Siberia experienced largely continental conditions that were favorable for deposition and preservation of plant matter. There were individual times of maximum coal accumulation that led to formation of coal beds. The number of coal beds in most wells is 10-30, and their aggregate thickness is in tens of meters. Also present are enormous masses of disseminated coaly material in the form of seams and lenses in various lithologic varieties. The Pokur Series of Aptian-Cenomanian age is a typical coal-bearing complex.
A warm humid climate and rapid development of plant life prevailed throughout all of the Early Mesozoic and Cenomanian in the study area. The carbon isotopic composition of the gases in these fields exhibits an elevated content of the "light" isotope C-12. There is an exceptional similarity between the gases of the study area and those of modern swamps, indicating that their formation was under conditions similar to those of modern swamps.
Processes of coalification are accompanied by generation of carbon dioxide along with methane. It is estimated that with increase in degree of coalification from the brown-coal stage to anthracite the amount of methane generated by one ton of coal increases from 68 to 287 cubic meters whereas the amount of carbon dioxide decreases. It is proposed that since at the brown-coal stage of catagenesis of the organic matter of the Pokur Series methane was generated in subordinate quantities in comparison with carbon dioxide, most of thje methane of the Cenomanian gas could have formed as a result of bacterial reduction of carbon dioxide.
Taken from Nemchenko, Rovenskaya, and Schoell, 1999; digested in Petroleum Geology, vol. 35, no. 3, p. 244-258, 2001; eight tables of data and one large cross section.
Copyright 2001 James Clarke. You are encouraged to print out this News Letter and to forward it to others. Earlier News Letters are available at our web page:
About the Author and Publisher Dr. James Clarke was born in Tennessee and grew up in Georgia. His higher education was interrupted by World War II, in which he was a Combat Infantryman in the 99th Division. Among other decorations he received the Belgium Croix de Guerre.
He received the B. A. from Emory University in 1947 and the Ph. D. from Yale University in 1950. His dissertation was under Dr. Adolph Knopf. From 1950 to 1959 he was a professor of geology at Vanderbilt University, University of South Carolina, and Duke University.
Clarke joined the United States Geological Survey in 1959 and was project chief of the group that prepared Geophysical Abstracts, Abstracts of North American Geology, and Bibliography of North American Geology, until these publications were discontinued in 1970. For the next seven years he conducted field mapping of sedimentary, igneous, and metamorphic rocks in the Appalachian region.
In 1977 Clarke became an initial member of the USGS World Energy Resources Program and continued with this group until his retirement in 1991. His major assignment was the preparation of regional and detailed studies of petroleum basins of the Soviet Union. He has published more than 70 scientific papers. Since his retirement he has continued his association with the Survey as a volunteer.
Since 1958 Clarke has published "Petroleum Geology", which is a digest in English of Russian language articles on petroleum geology. This journal is published privately on a non-profit basis in the interest of our science. He also responds to requests for consultation.
In March of this year Clarke was honored by the Special Award of the American Association of Petroleum Geologists for his contributions to the field of petroleum geology.
Mud Volcanoes of South Caspian Depression, Internet Geology News Letter No. 83, February 5, 2001Mud volcanoes are associated with the Alpine-Himalaya fold belt from northern Italy on the west to New Guinea on the east.
The most significvant of these are on the south of the Greater
Caucasus in Azerbayjan and in the South Caspian depression.
More than half the mud volcanoes of the world are concentrated in the South Caspian depression, and this does not even take into account those in the deep-water part of the Caspian Sea.
Pipelines Map Picture Here |