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7th Middle East Geosciences Conference and Exhibition
Manama, Bahrain
March 27-29, 2006
Fault
Trends in the Bahra Area, North Kuwait
1 Exploration Group, Kuwait Oil Company (K.S.C.), POBox 9758, Ahmadi, 61008, Kuwait, phone: +965
3989111 - 72309, fax: +965 3984397, [email protected]
2 Senior Geologist, Exploration Department, Kuwait Oil Company, P.O. Box 9758, Ahmadi, 61008, Kuwait, Ahmadi,
Kuwait
Located in the northern extension of the Burgan Arch, the Bahra area is recognised as a northwards plunging anticline. It was host to the first ever well to be drilled in the country.
Structural axis orientation in the Bahra area is north-south, whereas the predominant fault
trend along the anticline is
northwest - southeast. An intersecting zone of dislocations trending approximately east - west is present in the southern
parts of the area. Dislocation is uncommonly severe for this trend, which often is visible only on horizontal data displays.
Faults of the northwest - southeast trend are typically of a dilatational nature, sub-vertical, laterally extensive and very
straight.
Fault
throw is moderate, 20 - 40 ms. Age of the tectonic pulse is Cenomanian as indicated by the Mishrif as the
shallowest dislocated formation.
East - west faulting has occurred in a structurally constrained zone where intense dislocation has obliterated traces of individual faults on seismic. The zone is interpreted as a Cenomanian age, faulted uplift, followed by subsequent pulses of uplift and collapse extending into the Maastrichtian. Notably deposition of the Mishrif - Tayarat Formation interval was severely disrupted along the zone. Renewed subsidence post-dates the Eocene Rus Formation, which was deposited during a period of tectonic quiescence.
Anomalous seismic velocities are noted in the east - west fault
zone. The Maastrichtian - Campanian, Tayarat - Hartha
Formation carbonate section appears to be the most severely affected, where an interval velocity increase over undisturbed
areas has been noted.