The Role of Hydrogeology in Petroleum Development Oman

Abstract

A hydrogeological study of the South Oman Salt basin in particular, and the Oman basin in general, was carried out by Petroleum Development Oman to support basin modelling. The study focused on major aquifer systems: the Tertiary Umm Er Radhuma aquifer and the Paleozoic Haima-Haushi aquifers. Temperature, water quality, radiocarbon age dating and potentiometric data was used to determine the flow, thermal and salinity regimes of the systems. The resulting models were then used to define areas where oil biodegradation due to meteoric water influx can be expected. A review of oil chemistry data confirmed that fields in these areas have the highest API gravity oil demonstrating that hydrogeological modelling can be beneficial in predicting oil quality for prospect evaluation. An additional benefit of this study was the development of a formation water resistivity model for enhancing log analysis techniques.