Unconventional Petroleum Systems in Australia's Georgina Basin

Geoscience Australia's evaluation of shale gas and oil potential in the Georgina Basin, a ~325,000 sq. km sedimentary basin in south-central Australia. The assessment, published by the Australian Ocean Data Network, focuses on Middle Cambrian source rocks and uses methodology from the United States Geological Survey. It relies on updated stratigraphy, tectonic history, petrography, geochemistry, and petroleum systems modeling.

Use Cases

• Modeling petroleum systems based on described stratigraphy, tectonic history, and geochemistry.
• Assessing source rock richness and maturity using Rock Eval, FAMM, and isotopic relationships mentioned in the description.
• Identifying hydrocarbon migration patterns based on descriptions of oil staining and hybrid unconventional systems.
• Evaluating global Cambrian oceanic anoxic events through the lens of local organic-rich 'black shale' deposition.

Strengths

• Focuses on a specific, large (~325,000 sq. km) sedimentary basin with detailed geological context.
• Includes specific geochemical metrics, such as TOC up to 15.5% and HI up to 500 mg hydrocarbons/g TOC for the 'hot shale' unit.
• Applies a defined methodology from the United States Geological Survey for resource assessment.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
• Data files are in PDF and HTML formats, which may require extraction for computational analysis.

Provenance

Source

Geoscience Australia, published via the Australian Ocean Data Network.

Collection Method

Systematic evaluation using USGS methodology, incorporating stratigraphy, petrography, geochemistry, and modeling.

Time Range

Focus on Proterozoic-Paleozoic, specifically Middle Cambrian geological periods.

Freshness

Last updated 2026-04-28 12:45:46.193472; freshness should be verified.

Geography

Georgina Basin in south-central Australia.