short_hist petr expl u of myanmar_aapgmelbfinal

The History of Petroleum Explora5on in the Union of Myanmar

by Sco' E Thornton AAPG-‐SEG ICE, Melbourne

14 September, 2015

2

Overview of Basins

AHer Racey & Ridd, 2015

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SW Chindwin Central Burma L. Burma Irrawaddy Onshore

AHer Racey & Ridd, 2015 Harun, et al. 2014

Basins of the Central Burma Depression

Oil Produc5on

Gas Prod.

Source Rocks

4

Central Burma Basin ExploraSon History

•  Hand-‐dug wells in since 905 AD. First exports in 1855 by indigenous companies from Yenangyaung to India for burning in lamps.

•  First modern well in 1887 on Yenangyaung anScline by Burmah Oil: surface anScline with many hand-‐dug wells.

•  Subsequent exploraSon by Burmah Oil: surface mapping.

•  MOGE exploraSon: aeromagneScs (Mann Field), surface mapping and limited seismic data.

•  Onshore Bid Round in 1989: CompeSSve, but only one well tested any flowing hydrocarbons. Majors and larger independents exit, not to come back onshore.

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Central Burma Basin: Surface AnSclines


Mt. Popa

Si'aung Faults

Shan Plate

Pagan Yoma

Irrawaddy

Gwegyo-‐Tetma Yenangyat-‐Ayadaw

Yenangyaung

Yedwet

Mann

Htaukshabin Peppi

Ngalaingdwin

Arakan Yoma

Transfer Fault

Chauk

4 Fields with > 100 MMBOEUR

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The AnSclinal Theory: Born in Myanmar

In 1855, an Anglo-‐Irish geologist, Thomas Oldham, working in Burma as a geologist for the Indian Geological Survey, pointed out that “. . . the oil from the Yenangyaung field, then being produced from wells dug by hand, was connected with the highest part of an upfold—or anGcline—in the earth’s strata”.

Later called the An5clinal Theory of Petroleum Accumula5on

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Pumping hand-‐dug wells

Pumping hand-‐dug wells Hand-‐dug Wells First Observed in 1755 200 Families Working (Yenangyuang)

520 Wells in 1797 Corley, 1983

Longmuir, 1998 Ba Kyaw, 1982

Burmese Oral History: first producSon 905 AD ~ 1855

Safely hand drilling with a helmet

Digger wears a helmet: air pumped down manually from surface helmet made from kerosene can.

1912: Photo by Pascoe

Corley, 1983

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Yenangyaung in 1915: over 4,000 Wells

Burmah Oil Company photograph, courtesy

of BP Archive

Racey & Ridd, 2015

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Locally Made Rotary Well vs. Hand-‐dug

The Irrawaddy Times, 2013

For several decades however, groups of poor families have come here to explore for oil and exploit any finds. If they can collect oil they are obliged to pay local landowners a concession fee, which is set at between US $500 to $2,000 for the use of a roughly 20 square-‐meter plot.

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Central Burma Basin: up to 27 pay sands Most Prolific Oil Basin in Myanmar: Four 100 MMBOEUR fields


Ngalaingdwin

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Central Burma Basin: Surface AnSclines


Mt. Popa

Sagaing Faults

Shan Plate

Pagan Yoma

Irrawaddy

Gwegyo-‐Tetma Yenangyat-‐Ayadaw

Yenangyaung

Yedwet

Mann

Htaukshabin Peppi

Ngalaingdwin

Arakan Yoma

Transfer Fault

Chauk

DEM

Pagan

Unocal Kandaw 1 (1991) Oil and gas shows

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Yenangyaung AnScline: Where It All Began ProducSon

Peaked in 1918 At 17,000 BOPD

Burmese exported First crude to India In 1855, before Burmah Oil

EUR = 200 MMBO Cum (1992) = 187


Early Hand-‐dug Well ProducSon 33–38 API and contains around 7.5% wax (candle making)

SSll the top producing field in Burma at 1940 bopd

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Chindwin Basin: Map and StraSgraphy


Indaw Yenan

Patalon

Hand-‐dug wells SSll producing 28-‐35 API from Eocene Sandstones

DEM

Schwebo-‐ Monywa

Hukawng

Indo-‐Burman Ranges

(Arakan Yoma)

Assam Basin (India)

Schwe Uyu (Amoco)

Patalon

Indaw Yenan

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Drilled Traps In Chindwin Basin: Compressional


Oil and Gas in Eocene Sandstones But Tight, Shale Heaving Problems

Drilled in 1925

Small Reserves: 7 MMBC and 900 BCF

Wells By Sinopec In 2007

Drilled in 1918 & 2002

Produced 1.2 MMBO UnSl destroyed during WWII 75 Wells Drilled, each producing 10-‐12 BOPD. Small local refinery.

Problems with overpressure in later wells drilled by Burmah, Yukong and MOGE. One blowout. Mud volcanoes at surface.

Early–Middle Miocene Sandstones

Why has this large basin yielded so li'le oil? 1.  Charge limited: structures underfilled

2.  DisrupSon of traps by tectonics (preservaSon) 3.  Tight reservoirs

Eocene

Eocene

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Hukawng Basin: FronSer Geological Map with Wells StraSgraphy

Cause of failure of 4 wells by MOGE in Hukawng is problemaSc:

•  Source rocks present in area: ~ 1.6 %, lean, although coaly M. Cretaceous rocks near by should be be'er.

•  Drilled on valid traps? •  Were there shows? Along migraSon path? •  Reservoirs good to very good: 10-‐22% porosity for

Oligocene and Eocene •  Seals?

LocaSon


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Schwebo-‐Monywa Basin: Charge Limited?


Mostly broad plain at surface

Rank fronSer, 2011 ExploraSon

On Trend with Pegu Yoma Fold Belt

TerSary too proximal to provenance for source rock development?

Provenance Area Fluvial Transport

To West

Sagaing Fault & Horse Tail Faults

Mandalay

Pagan

Sagaing

Aungzaya-‐1 ExploraSon by Chinese

Aungzeya

•  Long, narrow anSclines cut by strike-‐slip faults

•  Discovered beneath mud volcanoes with gas seeps

•  Drilling 1920s-‐1980

•  First wells with limestone containing hydrocarbons in country

•  Small traps

Lower Burma (Pyay) Basin: Very Small Oil & Gas Fields


Pyay

Pyaye

Onshore Irrawaddy Basin


Pegu Yoma

Si'aung Basin

Shan Plateau

Indo-‐ Burma Ranges (Arakan Yoma)

Sagaing Fault 200-‐300 km offset

(U Win Swe, pers. Comm.)

Yangon (Rangoon)

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Onshore Irrawaddy Gas Discoveries Shell

Basement

18 M.-‐U. Miocene and Pliocene gas sands

Porosity of 20-‐25%, gross=180 m.

450 BCF BCFEUR (Nyi Nyi Soe, 2014 U.N.—100 BCFEUR

Currently producing (2015) 5.94 MMSCD & 29 BCPD


Main source of gas for Rangoon. 259 B Liquids/day & 19 MMSCD

Basement

Pegu Yoma: impressive fold-‐thrust belt with exposed Miocene. No seeps. Very Gght rocks (Unocal field work, 1989). QuesSonable charge, hammer-‐ringing sandstones, conSnued structural deformaSon. 2 wells: Petrocanada/Unocal and BHPBilliton. Gas shows in very Sght sandstones in Petrocanada/Unocal well in northern Pegu Yoma.

SiNaung Basin: deep sedimentary fill, carbonate play, 2 wells, no shows (?). Presumably carbonate play. Grossly underexplored.

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Offshore South ExploraSon History

•  Offshore exploraSon started in 1969, 3CA (later Yadana Field) “discovered” by bad blowout on 3rd well.

•  1973: Gulf of Martaban service contract offering. 4 consorSa, 19 wells drilled, only one tested gas. All foreign companies pulled out by 1977.

•  1981-‐1986: Gulf of Martaban seismic and drilling by MOGE. Yadana discovery well (3DA-‐XA successfully tested. 1 exploraSon wells, and 2 appraisals. Several discoveries.

•  1988: Unocal reviewed 3DA (later Yadana) gas field opportunity. Declined.

•  1992: Yetagun by Texaco/Premier. 2007 -‐-‐ 460 MMCFPD, 1996-‐1997—other discoveries by Total/Unocal and Arco.

•  1998: Startup of Yadana producSon by Total/Unocal/PTTEP/MOGE. Commercial producSon in 2000. 2007 – 759 MMCFPD. Yetagun and Yadana combined – 12,000 bcpd.

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StraSgraphy and Fields: Offshore South

SchemaSc SecSon


Yadana & Sein Nilar believed to Be deeper water

M. Mioc. limestone

Badamyar

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Moa'ama & Tanitharyi Regions: Fields & Plays

Lower Miocene Carbonate Play

KarsSfied towards top

U. Miocene–Pliocene ClasSc Play

Late Oligo.–E. Mioc. shallow marine

and riH clasSc Play

Yadana: In mid-‐2014 the field was producing. 700 MMscfd with a recoverable resource of 6.41 TCF

Yetagun: 4.2 TCF? (MOGE, 2011)

Regional Top Seal Yadana Field ZawSka Field Yetagun Field


1.44 TCF

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Offshore West ExploraSon History

•  Local Arakanese hand-‐dug producSon since at least 1850s: drilled near seeps and mud volcanoes.

•  First modern well 1878—9 years before the first modern well in Yenangyaung. Oil Springs, Ontario—1858.

•  Several small companies, including the Australian Oil Company had exploraSon efforts onshore: small producSon which declined rapidly.

•  1975: 6 wells by Japanese, 1 by Total 1 by CiSes Service. No success.

•  2004: Daewoo discovers Shwe Field.

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Rakhine Offshore Structure and StraSgraphy

IHS Energy in Basu et al., 2010

Shwe

Basu et al. , 2010; aHer San Lwin et al., 2004

and Neirem et al., 2003

Reser. Source

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Shwe Gas Field Cluster: 9.1 TCF Proven Reserves

Myanmar’s Biggest Gas Field Complex MOGE PresentaSon, 2011

Trans-‐Myanmar Pipeline Route

Shwe 1 & 1A

Reservoir: Basin Floor Fan Deposits with

InjecStes Cossey et al., 2013

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Today: Peak of ExploraSon for Country 1988-‐1990: My Involvement

Block F

3CA (Yadana)

Thanks for Acreage Maps.

Racy and Kidd, 2015: a must buy if you are working on Myanmar:

Petroleum Geology of Myanmar, Geol. Soc., London, Mem. 45

Thanks to Ecopetrol for Support in Giving This Paper and Paying My Way Down Under

Room in Schwedagon Pagoda, Rangoon

short_hist petr expl u of myanmar_aapgmelbfinal

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