Changes

#New exploration concepts and challenging dogmas will lead to discoveries in immature and mature basins. In the Levantine Basin there are numerous play types that have yet to be tested.<ref name=Nader_2014 /> <ref name=Marlow_2014 /> <ref name=Gardoshandtannenbaum_2014 /> <ref name=Montadertetal_2014 /> In the past, the Levantine basin was overlooked partly because it was thought to be underlain by oceanic crust. Challenging dogmas like this and other early assumptions can open up new areas for exploration. Lebanon is under-explored and has undiscovered potential, including the Triassic which is the top producer in Syria.<ref name=Nader_2014 /> In Upper Egypt, the Kom Ombo Basin has had recent discoveries of commercial oil in a basin roughly the size of the Gulf of Suez.<ref name=Dolsonetal_2014 /> Yemen has several frontier onshore basins including the San’a Basin that may have working petroleum systems in the Paleozoic and Mesozoic sections.<ref name=Assaruriandsorkhabi_2014 /> The Rub’ Al-Khali Basin, part of which extends partially into Yemen, is an established petroleum basin in Saudi Arabia, however, it remains a frontier in Yemen.

#New exploration concepts and challenging dogmas will lead to discoveries in immature and mature basins. In the Levantine Basin there are numerous play types that have yet to be tested.<ref name=Nader_2014 /> <ref name=Marlow_2014 /> <ref name=Gardoshandtannenbaum_2014 /> <ref name=Montadertetal_2014 /> In the past, the Levantine basin was overlooked partly because it was thought to be underlain by oceanic crust. Challenging dogmas like this and other early assumptions can open up new areas for exploration. Lebanon is under-explored and has undiscovered potential, including the Triassic which is the top producer in Syria.<ref name=Nader_2014 /> In Upper Egypt, the Kom Ombo Basin has had recent discoveries of commercial oil in a basin roughly the size of the Gulf of Suez.<ref name=Dolsonetal_2014 /> Yemen has several frontier onshore basins including the San’a Basin that may have working petroleum systems in the Paleozoic and Mesozoic sections.<ref name=Assaruriandsorkhabi_2014 /> The Rub’ Al-Khali Basin, part of which extends partially into Yemen, is an established petroleum basin in Saudi Arabia, however, it remains a frontier in Yemen.

#Incorporating technological advances can lead to exploration success and also improved recovery i.e. Qatar’s latest increase in oil production from the mid Cretaceous offshore Al Shaheen giant oil field utilized long horizontal wells to unlock previously recognized potential.<ref name=Vanbuchemetal_2014>van Buchem, F. S. P., N. Svendsen, E. Hoch, R. Pedersen-Tatalovic, and K. Habib, 2014, [http://archives.datapages.com/data/specpubs/memoir106/data/641_aapg-sp1960641.htm Depositional history and petroleum habitat of Qatar], ''in'' L. Marlow, C. Kendall, and L. Yose, eds., Petroleum systems of the Tethyan region: AAPG Memoir 106, p. 641-677.</ref> Low- angle and multi-lateral wells are being successfully applied to increase productivity and recovery from low permeability carbonate reservoirs (e.g. microporous rocks) that are widespread across the Tethyan region and contain vast hydrocarbon accumulations.

#Incorporating technological advances can lead to exploration success and also improved recovery i.e. Qatar’s latest increase in oil production from the mid Cretaceous offshore Al Shaheen giant oil field utilized long horizontal wells to unlock previously recognized potential.<ref name=Vanbuchemetal_2014>van Buchem, F. S. P., N. Svendsen, E. Hoch, R. Pedersen-Tatalovic, and K. Habib, 2014, [http://archives.datapages.com/data/specpubs/memoir106/data/641_aapg-sp1960641.htm Depositional history and petroleum habitat of Qatar], ''in'' L. Marlow, C. Kendall, and L. Yose, eds., Petroleum systems of the Tethyan region: AAPG Memoir 106, p. 641-677.</ref> Low- angle and multi-lateral wells are being successfully applied to increase productivity and recovery from low permeability carbonate reservoirs (e.g. microporous rocks) that are widespread across the Tethyan region and contain vast hydrocarbon accumulations.

#Unconventional resources are gaining increased importance in the Tethyan region. Oman is one of the first countries in the Tethyan region where unconventional resources are being actively pursued.<ref name=Droste_2014 /> Pilot wells into liquid-rich source rocks in the Precambrian and Cretaceous intervals have been drilled and are currently being tested.<ref name=Droste_2014 /> The Permian-Carboniferous Unayzah in Saudi Arabia is being tested for shale-gas. Tight-oil plays in fractured Jurassic and Upper Cretaceous source rocks have been tested in Kuwait<ref name=Alsharhanetal_2014>Alsharhan, A. S., C. J. Strohmenger, F. H. Abdullah, and G. Al Sahlan, 2014, [http://archives.datapages.com/data/specpubs/memoir106/data/541_aapg-sp1960541.htm Mesozoic Stratigraphic evolution and hydrocarbon habitats of Kuwait], ''in'' L. Marlow, C. Kendall, and L. Yose, eds., Petroleum systems of the Tethyan region: AAPG Memoir 106, p. 541-611.</ref> and the plays could extend into Iraq<ref name=Grabowski_2014 /> and Iran.<ref name=Bordenave_2014 /> In Iraq, heavy oil accumulated in shallow reservoirs and at the surface. Upper Cretaceous also holds potential elsewhere across the margin, for example the Campanian Sirt Shale in Libya<ref name=Hassanandkendall_2014 /> and the Campanian-Maastrichtian Shale in Jordon.<ref name=L&uuml;ningandkuss_2014 /> Oil-shale exploration in Jordan is underway and according to a World Bank consultant on oil and energy, “utilised quantities of oil shale in Jordan can generate around 35 Bbo barrels of oil, more than the US oil reserves.”<ref name=Obeidat_2012>Obeidat, O., 5-7-2012, Oil shale is Jordan's saviour-international expert by Omar Obeidat, May 17, 2012, 22:48 Updated: May 17, 2012, 22:48: http://jordantimes.com/oil-shale-is-jordans-saviour----intl-expert.</ref> In Syria, the main Paleozoic, Triassic, Jurassic and upper Cretaceous/Eocene source-rocks which have fed the Palmyrides, Euphrates and NW corner hydrocarbon fields are potential shale oil and gas opportunities.<ref name=Barrieretal_2014 /> In Egypt, unconventional plays are being pursued in the Western Desert in the Abu Gharadig Basin.<ref name=Dolsonetal_2014 /> Silurian source rock is a potential target for shale gas in many regions. The Silurian Tanezzuft Shale Formation in Libya and its equivalents in adjacent countries (including Tunisia and Algeria) is prospective<ref name=Hassanandkendall_2014 /> and the Silurian Dadas Formation in Turkey is being drilled for unconventional resource.<ref name=Derman_2014 /> Candidate source rocks for unconventional resources are ubiquitous across the Tethyan Margin.

#Unconventional resources are gaining increased importance in the Tethyan region. Oman is one of the first countries in the Tethyan region where unconventional resources are being actively pursued.<ref name=Droste_2014 /> Pilot wells into liquid-rich source rocks in the Precambrian and Cretaceous intervals have been drilled and are currently being tested.<ref name=Droste_2014 /> The Permian-Carboniferous Unayzah in Saudi Arabia is being tested for shale-gas. Tight-oil plays in fractured Jurassic and Upper Cretaceous source rocks have been tested in Kuwait<ref name=Alsharhanetal_2014>Alsharhan, A. S., C. J. Strohmenger, F. H. Abdullah, and G. Al Sahlan, 2014, [http://archives.datapages.com/data/specpubs/memoir106/data/541_aapg-sp1960541.htm Mesozoic Stratigraphic evolution and hydrocarbon habitats of Kuwait], ''in'' L. Marlow, C. Kendall, and L. Yose, eds., Petroleum systems of the Tethyan region: AAPG Memoir 106, p. 541-611.</ref> and the plays could extend into Iraq<ref name=Grabowski_2014 /> and Iran.<ref name=Bordenave_2014 /> In Iraq, [[heavy oil]] accumulated in shallow reservoirs and at the surface. Upper Cretaceous also holds potential elsewhere across the margin, for example the Campanian Sirt Shale in Libya<ref name=Hassanandkendall_2014 /> and the Campanian-Maastrichtian Shale in Jordon.<ref name=L&uuml;ningandkuss_2014 /> Oil-shale exploration in Jordan is underway and according to a World Bank consultant on oil and energy, “utilised quantities of oil shale in Jordan can generate around 35 Bbo barrels of oil, more than the US oil reserves.”<ref name=Obeidat_2012>Obeidat, O., 5-7-2012, Oil shale is Jordan's saviour-international expert by Omar Obeidat, May 17, 2012, 22:48 Updated: May 17, 2012, 22:48: http://jordantimes.com/oil-shale-is-jordans-saviour----intl-expert.</ref> In Syria, the main Paleozoic, Triassic, Jurassic and upper Cretaceous/Eocene source-rocks which have fed the Palmyrides, Euphrates and NW corner hydrocarbon fields are potential shale oil and gas opportunities.<ref name=Barrieretal_2014 /> In Egypt, unconventional plays are being pursued in the Western Desert in the Abu Gharadig Basin.<ref name=Dolsonetal_2014 /> Silurian source rock is a potential target for shale gas in many regions. The Silurian Tanezzuft Shale Formation in Libya and its equivalents in adjacent countries (including Tunisia and Algeria) is prospective<ref name=Hassanandkendall_2014 /> and the Silurian Dadas Formation in Turkey is being drilled for unconventional resource.<ref name=Derman_2014 /> Candidate source rocks for unconventional resources are ubiquitous across the Tethyan Margin.

#Extension of onshore petroleum systems to the adjacent offshore can lead to exploration opportunities in the Eastern Mediterranean-Levantine Basin and Arabian Peninsula.<ref name=Hassanandkendall_2014 /> <ref name=Dolsonetal_2014 /> <ref name=Marlow_2014 /> <ref name=Gardoshandtannenbaum_2014 /> <ref name=Nader_2014 /> <ref name=Vanbuchemetal_2014 /> <ref name=Alsharhanetal_2014 />

#Extension of onshore petroleum systems to the adjacent offshore can lead to exploration opportunities in the Eastern Mediterranean-Levantine Basin and Arabian Peninsula.<ref name=Hassanandkendall_2014 /> <ref name=Dolsonetal_2014 /> <ref name=Marlow_2014 /> <ref name=Gardoshandtannenbaum_2014 /> <ref name=Nader_2014 /> <ref name=Vanbuchemetal_2014 /> <ref name=Alsharhanetal_2014 />

#Historically, structural plays have been the focus of exploration in the Tethyan Region. Expanding exploration to include stratigraphic plays, pre-salt and drilling deeper targets may open up new exploration opportunities in discovered fields.

#Historically, structural plays have been the focus of exploration in the Tethyan Region. Expanding exploration to include stratigraphic plays, pre-salt and drilling deeper targets may open up new exploration opportunities in discovered fields.