Seismic Attribute Analysis in Understanding the Facies Distribution of Minagish Formation in Western Kuwait

Srinivasa R. Narhari*, Mohammed D. Al-Ajmi, and Saifullah K. Tanoli
KOC
*[email protected]

Hydrocarbon production from the Valanginian Minagish Formation in Kuwait is limited to the western Kuwaiti fields like Minagish and Umm Gudair. Exploratory efforts in other parts of the country for this play-equivalent have met with limited success. The primary reason for this was the lack of trap integrity in the western part of the country and unfavorable facies development in the north and northeast. This presentation examines the integration of seismic analysis and geological understanding in deciphering the paleo-basin configuration for this play in the western part of the country. Based on the application of seismic attributes and seismic waveform analysis techniques, an edge of the prograding, high-energy facies was interpreted. This facies corresponds to the middle unit of the Minagish Formation, the main producing interval in the western Kuwaiti fields. A 2-D seismic dataset has provided the general trend of the facies, whereas with the help of the 3-D seismic it was possible to delineate the approximate edge of the facies boundary. Spectral decomposition and other seismic attributes were applied in the interval of interest when mapping the zone of facies change. This study has highlighted a potential stratigraphic-structural exploration play fairway corresponding to the Minagish Formation. Seismic-attribute mapping and seismic-waveform characterization were found to be efficient tools in understanding the distribution of facies for this play. Recent drilling results have corroborated the interpretation by encountering a thin reservoir facies coincident with the zone of seismic facies change.

AAPG Search and Discovery Article #90077©2008 GEO 2008 Middle East Conference and Exhibition, Manama, Bahrain