Sequence Stratigraphy of the Late Miocene Southern Taranaki Basin Inversion Phase

Abstract:

Three-dimensional (3-D) seismic data allows for the accurate spatial mapping and correlation of stratigraphic sequences in the subsurface. When integrated with multiple wells, it is possible to create an age-constrained sequence stratigraphic model of the subsurface. Specifically, 3-D seismic allows for the extrapolation of key lithological and stratigraphic surfaces away from the well’s location. Recent sequence stratigraphic studies of the Taranaki Basin, offshore the western coast of New Zealand’s North Island, have shown evidence of forced regression due to uplift caused by the collision of the Pacific and Australian plates. However, these studies have been more basinal in scale, and have failed to investigate the localized effect and evolution caused by the inversion of dormant normal faults. Here we illustrate how localized uplift in the Southern Taranaki Basin in the late Miocene resulted in the formation of massive deep-water channel systems. Furthermore, we integrate seismic sequence stratigraphy methods within two 3-D seismic volumes: the Hector-3D and Pipeline-3D surveys. These surveys are positioned eight kilometers apart along depositional dip, allowing for the correlation of key chronostratigraphic events via intersecting 2-D seismic lines. Key volume attributes are generated and extracted along interpreted horizons to visualize key architectural elements in plan-view. This multi-disciplinary approach results in the identification of multiple high-order sequences that formed in response to localized uplift associated with the Late Miocene Soutern Taranaki Basin Inversion Phase (SCTIP). These results suggests that the SCTIP had a more southern effect, and provides insight into the regional sequence stratigraphy of the Southern Taranaki Basin.