Volcanic reservoirs: historic and current context

Abstract

Within the oil and gas industry, igneous rocks are still seen as exploration and production challenges, due to their diverse petrogenesis and the wide range of values of some important petrophysical properties. This petrophysical variability depends on both primary and secondary processes. These facts made these rocks unattractive for decades. This condition is still observed in many fields around the world. This article has as main objective to make a historical review of studies developed globally with a focus on igneous rocks that act as a reservoir in petroleum systems. The review covered in this article was developed from a compilation of global data, thus allowing an overview of the countries that produce hydrocarbons in volcanic rocks, what types of rocks, geological age, and size of the reserve. Countries such as China and Indonesia stand out with higher daily production, exceeding orders of quantities of 108 cubic meters of gas and 104 tons of barrels of oil. In these countries, geological patterns are already being noticed in volcanic reservoirs, such as more recent geological ages and typical lithologies. Also, this work seeks to emphasize the importance of studying this type of reservoir, as its knowledge can lead to the solution of real problems within the world oil and gas industry.

Crucial Development Technologies for Volcanic Hydrocarbon Reservoirs: Lessons Learned from Asian Operations

“…Lithology in order of hydrocarbon abundance involves basalts, andesites, volcaniclastics, rhyolites, dacites, granite, dolerites, tuffs, ignimbrites, serpentinites, pyroclastics, etc., but primarily basalt (38.5%), andesite (15.9%), volcaniclastic (12.1%), and rhyolite (11.5%) [1,2,32].…”

“…Figure 1 shows the global distribution of hydrocarbon occurrence associated with igneous reservoirs. The 78 largest reservoirs with more than 1000 Mbbl reserves are shown in Figure 2 [1,2]. The largest volcanic reservoirs are located in East and South Asia, the Middle East, and the Americas.…”

“…For many years, volcanic reservoirs were regarded as coincidental and too difficult to develop, and they were not primary exploration targets [3,4]. Therefore, only 1/3 of the identified volcanic hydrocarbon reserves are commercially produced [2] due to the challenges of exploration and production. The exploration and development of these reservoirs is an ongoing learning and practicing process.…”