This paper was presented at the 2001 Annual AAPG convention in Denver, Colorado.

ABSTRACT: Exploring the Outer Limits of the Upper Jurassic Source Rocks on the Grand Banks of

Newfoundland, Canada

Jock N. McCracken1, Andrew C. Barnwell2, Annemone Haager3, Peter Kubica1, Ken I. Saunders1,

Christian Zwach4

(1) Petro-Canada, Calgary, AB

(2) Norsk Hydro Canada Oil & Gas, Calgary, AB

(3) Target GeoConsulting, Aachen, Germany

(4) Norsk Hydro ASA, Oslo, Norway

The recent expansion of exploration and development on the Grand Banks of Newfoundland requires

that source rocks, the cornerstone of the petroleum system, be fully understood with regard to richness,

geographic distribution and hydrocarbon potential. The Jeanne d'Arc Basin is an established petroleum

province within the Grand Banks with approximately 2.4 billion barrels of known recoverable oil. The

Upper Jurassic (Kimmeridgian) "Egret Member" source rock is the main source for the producing

Hibernia Field; plus the Terra Nova, Hebron/Ben Nevis and White Rose Fields, which are in development

or under evaluation. Recent land sale activity, however, has been stretching the potential core

exploration area beyond the traditional published productive limits of these source rocks, into the

Flemish Pass, Cumberland/Dominion area, Anson Graben and Carson Basin. The presence or absence of

source rocks is the greatest risk in these under-explored basins.

Measured source rock data from both public and internal sources were compiled, screened and re-

interpreted. Wireline crossplot techniques and geophysical data provided control for mapping thickness

trends and depositional limits in areas with little or no geochemical data. Expelled hydrocarbon volumes

were estimated by integrating the source rock maps with maturity data and basin modeling results. In

the end, detailed source rock studies allow us to move beyond the Jeanne d'Arc Basin to the outer limits

of the source potential.

AAPG Search and Discovery Article #90906©2001 AAPG Annual Convention, Denver, Colorado