Seismic facies and depositional environment of clastic deposit offshore Niger Delta

Abraham Opatola

Department of Geology

University of Port Harcourt, Port Harcourt, Nigeria

E-mail: a.opatola@yahoo.com

ABSTRACT

The integration of three-dimensional seismic reflection data with well and paleobathymetry data in the eastern offshore Niger Delta reveal four seismic facies packages in the area study. The environments of deposition of the area consist of the shelf, slope and deepwater settings characterized by deposition within the inner neritic, middle neritic, outer neritic and upper bathyal paleowater depth. The interpreted environment are dominated by the submarine canyons and channel-levee systems which consist predominantly of turbidite, distributary channel complexes, hemipelagic and debris flow deposits which appears on seismic section as layered and chaotic facies. The depositional model of the area generated by integration of seismic, paleobathmetry, paleogeographic and well data shows that the deposition transect down the axis of fluvial depositional systems transporting sediment through submarine canyons into the base of slope and basin plain as fans. The complex fault pattern as well as the discontinous nature of sand bodies favours the formation of combined structural and stratigraphic traps in the area.