A Proposed Enhancement for Duvernay East Shale Basin Terminology
While putting the finishing touches on the East Shale Basin Duvernay hydrodynamics evaluation, it has become apparent that the ESB could do with a little bit of sub-dividing. As with other basins, the previous work was focused on understanding and describing the conventional reservoirs and plays. In the case of the ESB, the regions between the reefs was terra incognita. Terms such as the Ghost Pine, Westerose and Burnt Timber Embayments are useful for establishing the presence of related Leduc pools rather than describing the basin. After some thorough research, I have not found any sub-basins mentioned in the literature. A corporate presentation does reference the "Wimborne Basin" without providing any rationale for the name.
I have been working with the terminology illustrated in the map shown below. The parameters used include:
The proposed sub-basin represents a significant region extending between Leduc reef complexes
Nomenclature considerations:
Sub-basin name is based on the Strike Area (or Well Name) of the oldest Beaverhill Lake Penetration (full Woodbend Group penetration) within the basin area with a suitable log suite (e.g. Resistivity, Gamma Ray - Neutron given the vintage of the possible type wells)
Well Name/Strike Area was not previously used for a producing reef (e.g. Chigwell)
Well is relatively centrally located within the sub-basin
The upshot is that I landed on 3 sub-basins with a proposed subdivision illustrating the following:
Morningside Sub-Basin
a western sub-basin between the Rimbey-Meadowbrook Reef Complex and the Bashaw Reef Complex
Named after CHEVRON MORNINGSIDE 14-20-41-27 (100/14-20-041-27W4/00) in the midst of the current Morningside and Joffre Duvernay drilling
The region between the Bashaw Reef Complex and the Killam Barrier Reef Complex is broken into two sub-basins connected by a channel south of the Fenn-Big Valley pool:
Duvernay Sub-Basin
the region to the northeast of the Fenn-Big Valley/Bashaw reefs
Named after the Duvernay type well: BEAVERHILL LAKE NO. 2 WELL (100/11-11-050-17W4/00)
The placement of the boundary between the Morningside and Duvernay Sub-Basins was guided by the presence of a significant aeromagnetic high indicating a possible ridge seperating the two basins
Huxley Sub-Basin
the region to the south and southwest of the Fenn-Big Valley/Bashaw reefs
Named after B.A. CPR HUXLEY 2-33-33-22 (100/02-33-033-22W4/00) offsetting current Duvernay activity
I look forward to your thoughts and any comments on how this nomenclature might be improved.