An examination of the spatial and temporal evolution of a complex transition zone in the Gulf of Paria, Trinidad-Venezuela (Eastern Venezuela Basin/EVB).

Abstract

The Eastern Venezuela Basin lies within the northern South America geologic province and is one of the most petroliferous basins in the world. The basin straddles Venezuela and Trinidad which are major producers of hydrocarbons. This thesis focuses on the Gulf of Paria which lies between Trinidad and Eastern Venezuela. This area has been the subject of previous works and is best described as a complex transition zone between a S/SE verging Fold, Thrust Belt (FTB) which has been subsequently deformed by Lateral Ramp/ Transpressional tectonics; Pull Apart formation; formation of a N verging Fold, Thrust Belt and the Foredeep depocentres of the EVB and Southern Basin in Trinidad. In addition to the subsequent structural evolution imposed on the Fold, Thrust Belt shale tectonics is also present within the study area and affects the evolution of the area including the hydrocarbon fields present. In this malaise of overprinting structural styles and mobile shale tectonics giant hydrocarbon fields, such as Corocoro (Venezuela) and Soldado (Trinidad) and smaller fields such as Pedernales (Venezuela), Brighton (Trinidad) and Point Fortin (Trinidad) occur. Using a cross border dataset, this work focuses on: 1. The definition and description of terranes within the area; 2. Describing the stratigraphic evolution of the study area; 3. Examining the interplay between the structural evolution and stratigraphic evolution of the area; 4. Proposing a model explaining the spatial and temporal of the area and 5. Examining the hydrocarbon potential of the various terranes defined by this work.