Salaverry Basin Petroleum Systems The Salaverry Basin is one of several northern Peruvian forearc basins. Located offshore east of the coastal regions of La Libertad and Ancash, it is a NW-SE elongate depression occupying approximately 30,000 km2 over the continental shelf and slope. It is separated by basement highs from the Trujillo and Lima Basins to the west and the offshore extension of the Sechura Basin to the north. The basin is thought to be filled with Cenozoic and Mesozoic sediments that exceed 5 km thickness in depocenters. Based on the interpretation of seismic and regional geological data, the Salaverry Basin is genetically related to the Trujillo, with respect to both their structural and stratigraphic evolution. The Salaverry was the shelf extension of the Trujillo Basin until an inversion during late Tertiary resulted in a structural high that separates the two basins. The Salaverry is a frontier basin and remains unexplored at this writing. There is no direct evidence of an active petroleum system. However oil seeps in the form of sea surface slicks have been documented in the Trujillo Basin to the west, and some wells drilled there contain oil shows. These hydrocarbons have been geochemically correlated to Cretaceous source rocks based on analogues from other Peruvian basins. Basin models suggest that presumed Early Cretaceous source rocks in the Salaverry have been buried deeply enough to generate hydrocarbons. There is no charge for this report. |
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Contact Rick Schrynemeeckers, Managing Director: Call: 1-281-681-8811 |
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