Publications

Hydrocarbon exploration in Eastern Indonesia was triggered by the discovery of oil and gas fields in the Birdhead area of Papua for a long time and the latest discovery was made in the northern shelf of Australia in 2016. There are 2 main petroleum plays that can be recognized within the area; Cenozoic and Mesozoic play. The Middle Jurassic sandstone is the proven hydrocarbon bearing reservoir in a Mesozoic play as discovered in the Abadi fields and Tangguh area, while the hydrocarbon in the Cenozoic play is derived from the Miocene age reservoir as discovered in the Birdhead area of Papua. The last significant hydrocarbon discovery was made in 2000. There is no signification hydrocarbon discovery made since then. The significant accumulation of hydrocarbon is mostly discovered within the extensional related structures for a Mesozoic which mostly encountered in the northern shelf of Australia. The structural trap for a Cenozoic play relates to the syn-orogenic structural product which is mostly recognized in the Bird head area of Papua. The Aru trough is an attractive exploration spot. The area lies within the proven hydrocarbon discovery of the Mesozoic trend on the northern shelf of Australia. Some wells have been drilled within the area with no encouraging result as yet for various reasons. The understanding of the basin evolution supported by the structural features from the recent seismic work has indicated the possibility of Mesozoic sediment presence which opens the opportunity to explore the area to prove the presence of Mesozoic sediment and its hydrocarbon potency as encountered in some other places in eastern Indonesia. Interpretation based on seismic 2D and 3D and a complete set of well data have been integrated to prove the possibility of Mesozoic sediment presence within the area. The result of this study is aimed to open the hidden opportunity in the Aru trough.