Will Australia Fulfill the Promise of the Paleozoic?

Less than one percent of Australia's crude oil has been produced from its Lower Paleozoic systems, despite the presence of widespread excellent source rocks. This text-based publication from Geoscience Australia analyzes the petroleum potential of onshore basins, focusing on Cambrian, Ordovician, and Proterozoic systems. It discusses exploration trends, geological challenges like the Alice Springs Orogeny, and the impact of new extraction technologies.

Use Cases

• Assessing hydrocarbon charge risk in Lower Paleozoic basins based on described burial and preservation uncertainties.
• Evaluating the potential for shale gas development in Australian onshore basins by comparing them to North American Paleozoic sequences.
• Identifying specific basins with proven source rocks, such as the Ordovician Amadeus Basin or Late Devonian Canning Basin, for targeted exploration.
• Studying the impact of the Late Paleozoic Alice Springs Orogeny on the preservation of hydrocarbon accumulations.

Strengths

• Produced by the authoritative government agency Geoscience Australia.
• Provides specific geological facts, including oil production since 1984 and a near-doubling of exploration license area from 2010 to 2012.
• Cross-platform presence on data.gov.au signals official importance and accessibility.

Limitations

• Metadata is incomplete: row count, column names, file size, and license information are not provided.
• The dataset is described as a publication (PDF/HTML), suggesting it is textual analysis rather than structured, machine-readable data.
• The 'last updated' dates (2026-04-20, 2026-05-14) are in the future relative to the current date, indicating potential metadata errors.

Provenance

Source

Geoscience Australia

Collection Method

Likely a synthesis of geological research and exploration data.

Time Range

Discusses geological history from the Proterozoic to present, with specific reference to exploration activity from 2010-2012 and production since 1984.

Freshness

Last updated: 2026-05-14 (as reported, but date is in the future).

Geography

Australia, specifically onshore basins including Amadeus, Canning, Arafura, Georgina, and Officer basins.