Surface seismic data have proven to be an invaluable asset for organizations producing hydrocarbons from unconventional resource plays. Initially, a primary benefit of surface seismic was the ability to locate and avoid drilling into zones with faults, fractures, and karsting which adversely affected the ability to complete the well successfully. More recent advances in prestack seismic data analysis yield attributes that appear to be correlated to formation lithology, rock strength, and stress fields. Knowledge and proper utilization of these attributes may prove valuable in the optimization of drilling and completion activities.

The Mahogany subsalt discovery is the petroleum industry’s first commercial subsalt oil development in the Gulf of Mexico. The discovery well tested 7,256 BOPD and 7.3 MMCFD on a 32/64” choke at 7,063 PSI flowing tubing pressure. The primary subsalt reservoir is a high-pressured oil sand with high permeability and porosity and has tremendous deliverability. The field is located 80 miles offshore Louisiana on Ship Shoal South Additions blocks 349/359. The structure is interpreted as a faulted anticline overlain by allochthonous salt. Prestack depth-migrated 3-D seismic data was integrated into a regional geologic model that was based on 2-D time-migrated data. Regionally, the area is characterized by multiple salt sheets, which form a salt canopy sutured east of Mahogany, and several older and deeper sheets are also identified. Subsalt depositional fairways can be approximated by mapping relative salt-induced paleo-bathymetry. Deepwater sand fairways are closely related to salt movements and extend under the salt sheets.

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