An overview of reservoir quality in producing Cretaceous strata of the Middle East

摘要

A compilation of average porosity and permeability data for Cretaceous petroleum reservoirs of the Middle East reveals important differences between the two main tectonic provinces. The Arabian Platform is characterized by inverse correlation of average porosity with burial depth in both carbonates and sandstones, whereas the Zagros Fold Belt (almost exclusively carbonates) has distinctly lower porosity and no depth correlation. These contrasts are suggested to reflect the fact that Arabian Platform strata are mostly near their maximum burial depth, whereas Zagros strata have experienced varying uplift and erosion following maximum burial in mid-Tertiary time. The carbonate reservoirs show no correlation between average porosity and average permeability, probably because of wide differences in the dominant pore types present, and permeabilities tend to be much higher for sandstones than for carbonates.