South Alamein petroleum system (Western Desert, Egypt)

The South Alamein study area is located in the Western desert of Egypt between the prolific petroleum trends of Razzak-Alamein and Baharriya. The petroleum system of the area has been evaluated within an exploration framework. Potential source rocks in the Cretaceous Alam El Bueib and Abu Roash Formations and the Cenozoic Apollonia Formation display good petroleum potential; however, they are thermally immature over a large part of the studied area. Compilation of existing data and new measurements have been carried out to determine the initial source potential of the Jurassic Khatatba Formation source rock as well as its kinetic parameters for hydrocarbon generation. Results show that maturation of the Jurassic source rock does not occur below 140 °C or a vitrinite reflectance of around 0.9%. This combination of temperature and vitrinite reflectance is not unusual for a mixed type II-type III source rock, but has crucial implications for exploration in the area. The main hydrocarbon kitchens are located northward of the study area and migration to the south began around 40 Ma ago. The hydrocarbons are primarily trapped in the crest of the Mesozoic tilted blocks. It is believed that both migration and trapping have been influenced by fault hydraulic behaviour. Since this behaviour is complex, a sensitivity analysis was carried out on the migration pathway compared with the fault sealing factor to understand the filling history of the structures.