Geology and hydrocarbon potential of the offshore Indus Basin, Pakistan

Carmichael, Scott M. M.; Akhter, S.; Bennett, John K.; Fatimi, Mansoor; Hosein, Kimberly; Jones, Robert W.; Longacre, M. B.; Osborne, Mark; Tozer, Richard

doi:10.1144/1354-079309-826

Cited by 43 publications

(55 citation statements)

References 16 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…An equivalent unconformity is recognized in the onshore Jaisalmer Basin (Figure , panel 4; Quadri & Shuaib, ; Wandrey et al, ). The offshore Indus Basin (Figure ) also records early Miocene erosional events (Carmichael et al, ; Clift et al, ; Quadri & Shuaib, ).…”

Section: Geological Background: the Nw Indian Intraplate Basinsmentioning

confidence: 95%

The Late Eocene‐Early Miocene Unconformities of the NW Indian Intraplate Basins and Himalayan Foreland: A Record of Tectonics or Mantle Dynamics?

et al. 2018

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

A well-developed late Eocene to Miocene unconformity, termed the base Miocene unconformity (BMU), is found throughout the intraplate basins of northwestern India and has previously been ascribed to Himalayan tectonics. This hypothesis is investigated by first describing the nature and age of the BMU in the northwest (NW) Indian intraplate basins and then reconstructing the location of the BMU relative to the Himalayan deformation front at the time it formed. We suggest that formation of the BMU in western India cannot be related to Himalayan tectonic processes associated with plate loading and flexure unless the Indian plate had an elastic thickness of >125 km, which is highly unlikely. Furthermore, the resumption of deposition post unconformity rules out inversion due to compression associated with India-Asia convergence as a cause, as these compressive forces are still present. We note the coeval nature of the unconformity in the NW Indian plate intraplate basins and the Himalayan peripheral foreland basin. If the unconformities of the Himalayan peripheral foreland basin and the NW Indian intraplate basins were formed by a common process, uplift due to circulation in the mantle is the only possible regional-scale mechanism. Such circulation could be the result of the intrinsically time-dependent high-Rayleigh number convection in the mantle, which has resulted in well-documented unconformities elsewhere, or be the result of subducting slab break-off beneath the Himalaya.

show abstract

Section: Geological Background: the Nw Indian Intraplate Basinsmentioning

confidence: 95%

The Late Eocene‐Early Miocene Unconformities of the NW Indian Intraplate Basins and Himalayan Foreland: A Record of Tectonics or Mantle Dynamics?

et al. 2018

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Pakistan offshore is divided into two portions depending on tectonic setting, that is, Makran offshore and Indus offshore (Shuaib, ). The Indus offshore is an Atlantic‐type continental margin, partly underlain by the continuation of the continental crust of the onshore River Indus Basin and partly by the oceanic crust of the Arabian Sea (Carmichael et al, ; Jaswal & Maqsood, ). It is believed that the River Indus offshore depression area (Figure ) is located over the oceanic crust (Calvès, Clift, and Inam ()).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Located in the south is Carlsberg Ridge, extending further north‐west and terminates into the Owen Fracture Zone (Jacob & Quittmeyer, ). The south of the study area is bounded by the Saurashtra High which is a major volcanic high extending north‐west India (Carmichael et al, ). The Laxmi Ridge is part of continental crust, separated from the present continental shelf by a wide crustal zone which is generally interpreted as extended continental material (Miles, Munschy, & Segoufin, ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Several studies have been carried out in the vicinity of the offshore Indus to discuss the subsurface geology, structure, and seismic sequence stratigraphy such as Carmichael et al (), Clift et al (), Daley and Alam (), Shuaib (), and Quadri and Shuaib (). Most of the earlier studies focused on tectonic evolution of the Indian Ocean, Arabian Sea, and Gondwanaland separation (Clift, Kroon, Gaedicke, & Craig, ; Fisher, Sclater, & Mckenzie, ; McGowran, ; Norton & Sclater, ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The seismic stratigraphy of the region was reviewed by Daley and Alam (); based on their interpretation, they delineated two phases of canyon development in Miocene and Plio‐Pleistocene which were correlated with the Indian and Eurasian plate collisions. Furthermore, a comprehensive study was carried out in the offshore Indus by Carmichael et al (), according to which the shallow water Palaeocene–Eocene‐aged carbonates were deposited along the volcanic seamounts. During Oligocene to recent times, the Indus River deposited 9‐km‐thick clastic sediments (Clift et al, ; Kolla & Coumes, ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Indications of uplift from seismic stratigraphy and backstripping of the well data in western Indus offshore Pakistan

Khan

Liu

Farid³

et al. 2019

Geological Journal

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Two-dimensional regional seismic reflection, oil well data, and biostratigraphic data have been used in integration to study the general structure, stratigraphic architecture, and subsidence history of the part of River Indus offshore Pakistan. The seismic data have been calibrated with the well data by generating the synthetic seismograms to identify the key reflectors indicative of major lithologic horizons. The sedimentary successions on the seismic sections are divided into passive and transpressive margin sediments on the basis of regional tectonics of the area. The western Indian margin is in oblique collision and transpression with Eurasian and Arabian plates creating Kirthar Range onshore and Murray Ridge offshore, respectively. Four mappable seismic sequences are identified within the passive margin sediments and two within the transpressive margin sediments. Due to the complex depositional setting of the basin, certain seismic sequences are not clear on the seismic records. In addition to depositional complexity, the seismic sequences are disturbed by the presence of normal faults generated probably under the action of gravity. It is interpreted from the seismic records that the normal faults were probably reactivated due to the movement of the basement blocks which have generated the push-up structures within the offshore depression area. The subsidence curves show a gentle convex upward trend, which suggest an uplift around 40 Ma probably resulting from the reactivation of the basement blocks. The study could be helpful in understanding the tectonics of the worldwide passive margins dominated by rifting and transpression stages.

show abstract