Abstract

Large hydrocarbon accumulations have been discovered in deepwater on continental slopes. This has increased petroleum industry interest in deepwater areas such that exploration companies are looking for similar plays worldwide. Modern 2D and 3D seismic data reveal increasingly clear images of the hydrocarbon accumulations of giant fields.

Seismic data over the Early Pliocene to Late Miocene Mars Field from the deepwater Gulf of Mexico is interpreted and compared with seismic data over a Mid to Late Cretaceous deepwater discovery in the Santos Basin off the east coast of Brazil.

These comparisons show that similarities exist between the two regions which include; major pre-salt hydrocarbon sources, basin dimension and geometry, as well as significant halokinetic activity. The reservoirs are deepwater turbidite sandstones. Differences between these regions include reservoir age, timing of trap formation, and minibasin geometry.

Regional seismic data and the comparison of this type of interpretation across deepwater producing fields can help aid exploration programs in searching for deepwater analogs.