Abstract:
The Mannar Basin is located between the western coasts of
Sri Lanka and the southern coast of India. The Sri Lankan portion of the basin
extends over 45,000 km2. It is a deep-water frontier with only two natural gas
discoveries. Studies show that the Paleogene and the Late Cretaceous sections
have potential hydrocarbon reservoirs. However, little is known regarding their
depositional features. The objective of this study was to understand the
depositional features in the Paleocene and Eocene sediments in the M2
exploration block in the Mannar basin using a three-dimensional seismic
volume. IHS Kingdom software was used for seismic data interpretation. The
root mean square amplitude was used to characterise sediment facies in seven
time windows having 50-millisecond intervals. The results show the occurrence
of an interpreted turbidite fan system in the Paleocene and Eocene sections. A
NE-SW trending deep-water canyon channel system occurs in the early Eocene
section.
