CHAPTER III

REGIONAL GEOLOGY

The Sangatta Bungalun area is located in the northern edge of the Kutai Basin.
The Kutai basin is a triangular shaped Tertiary sedimentary basin opening toward
the Makassar Strait in the east, with maximum sedimentary thickness just offshore
the present Mahakam Delta.

III.1 Tectonic Setting of Kalimantan

Regionally Kalimantan is a cored by a triangular-shaped nucleus (Latreille et al,

1971 op.cit Satyana et. al, 1999) pointing to the north, consisting of the Western
Kalimantan Schwarner continental shield as its base in the south, and of accreted
crust, comprising the Central Kalimantan Ranges to the north. On the plate
tectonic framework, Kutai basin was formed on the southeastern edge of
Sundaland which was influenced by the interaction of a few major plates (Fig.
III.1.1). Kalimantan is made up by a variety of amalgamated basement:
continental, oceanic and transitional (Fig.III.1.2).

Toward the east the continental crust of Kalimantan is bordered by the deep sea
floor of the Makassar Straits, where the continental crusts is highly extended
being rifted apart and an oceanic crust developed as a spreading center. This
spreading is the southern extension of the North Celebes basin. However this
interpretation is controversial, but most gravity modeling are more inclined to
interpret is as such. This opening narrows toward the south and disappears toward
south of the South Makassar Basin. The eastern crustal boundary of Kalimantan
can be considered also as a passive continental margin.

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Study area

Figure III.1.1 The tectonic framework of West Indonesia (Hall, 2008)

The northern margin of the continental crust is probably defined by a strike-slip

(former transform) on the northern margin of the Mangkalihat peninsula, which
the western extension of the Koro-Palu faults in Sulawesi. However, few authors
consider the Mangkalihat Peninsula as an isolated micro-continent, and the
Sundaland northern boundary is considered the Adang fault which extends toward
the Lupar Zone in Sarawak. North of Mangkalihat Peninsula, the Tarakan Basin is
considered floored by and accreted crust as the oceanic crust, as part of the
Celebes Sea basin, was subducted beneath the Kuching zone.

The Kalimantan continental crust can be considered as a collage of several microcontinents, with the Sundaland being the main continent, separated by sutures of
or remains of collisions (Fig. III.1.1). The curving Kuching Zone which separates
the Indonesia and Malaysia is a tightly folded and thrusted belt of metamorphic
rocks and deep marine sediments with intercalated ophiolites is interpreted as a
collision zone between the Luconia micro-continent (and its extension toward
northeast) and the Sundaland continent in the southeast (Fig.III1.2). The N-S
trending Meratus Range in southeastern Kalimantan can be also considered as a
suture amalgamating the Paternoster micro-continent on its east side with the

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Sundaland on its western side. The Meratus suture can be extended southward
into East Java Sea, where subsurface evidence is available offshore NW Madura
(Mudjiono, 2002 op.cit Satyana et. al, 1999).

Figure III.1.2 Crustal composition of Kalimantan

(Koesoemadinata et.al, 2007)

III.2 Kutai Basin

Kutai basin is the largest (165.000 km2) and the deepest (12.000-14.000 m)
Tertiary sedimentary basin in Indonesia. The basin is bounded to the north by the
Mangkalihat High, to the south the basin hinges on the Adang-Flexure (AdangPaternoster Fault), to the west it is terminated by the Kuching High, part of the

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Kalimantan Central Ranges, and to the east the opens into the Strait of Makassar.
Kutei basin can be separated into Inner (Upper) Kutei Basin and Outer (Lower)
Kutei Basin. Both basins are separated by zone of a basement high characterized
by the presence of Eocene to Oligocene volcanics and an adjacent gravity high
(Satyana et. al, 1999) (Fig.III.2.1).

Figure III.2.1 Kutai Basin area and its surrounding. It is divided into inner
(upper) and outer (lower) Kutai Basin (Satyana et.al, 1999)

The Upper Kutei Basin consist mainly of Paleogene sediments which most
authors consider as the exposure as the Paleogene strata underlying the Lower
Kutei Basin. Some other authors consider the Upper Kutei Basin as a separate
basin, presumably a remnant of a Paleogene foreland basin, that was largely

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destroyed during a collision of the Luconia micro-continent and the Sunda

continent.

The Lower Kutei Basin consists mainly of Neogene (Early Miocene to Recent)
strata deposited in a great prograding delta system toward the Makassar Strait
with sediments provided by the uplift of the Pre-Tertiary to Paleocene strata of the
Kuching Zone, which a suture zone as the result of the Luconia micro-continent
and other parts of the southeastern portion of the break-away South China Sea
continent.

From tectono-stratigraphic point of view, Tertiary strata southeast of the Kuching

zone, can be subdivided into two stages of basin development in:

1. The Paleogene stage; The Paleogene stage is often considered as the

rifting stage in Eastern Kalimantan. The Paleogene rifting stage began
Eocene or even Paleocene time and ended at the end of Early Oligocene,
as the topography were denudated and carbonate platforms developed in
the Barito basin and Mangkalihat High.

2. The Transition stage; A transitional stage developed in some parts of east

Kalimantan, presumably a tectonic quiescence with the development of
carbonate platforms in the high areas of East Kalimantan, such as the
BaritoPasirAsem-asem basins, the Paternoster and Mangkalihat
Platforms and also in the Upper Kutei basin

3. The Neogene stage; During the Neogene two uplifted zones played an
important role in the development of the Kuching Zone, also called the
Kuching Uplift, and it is a dominating factor in during the Neogene stage,
as it provided sediments for the Lower Kutei and Tarakan basins.

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III.3 Regional Structure of Kutai Basin

Kutai basin is bounded by Adang Fault in the southern and Mangkalihat Fault in
the northern area. These large faults extend into the Makassar Strait and may be
the land extension of the transform faults related to the spreading of the Makassar
Strait or offshoots from the Palu-Koro Fault. These WNW-ESE trending dextral
strike-slip faults originated during the Paleogene along initially pre-Tertiary weak
tectonic trend. The NE SW structure is interpreted as the normal graben fault in
the rifting stage which was inverted in the Neogene time.

Fold and thrust structures dominated the Kutai Basin area. The fold structure
E-W trend on the Mangkalihat Peninsula and an N-S to NNW-SSE trend in the
southern part of the area. The N-S trending fold system is typical of the Kutai
basin, broad gentle synclines and sharp thrusted anticlines.

The NNE-SSW trending fold and thrust (reverse) faults are bending in Upper
Kutai Basin area toward NE-SW and farther east towards E-W. These thrust folds
are typically sharp-crested with broad intervening syncline, typical for the Kutai
Basin. These fold and thrust structures involve mainly Neogene strata and are
related to the inversion of the graben related normal faults at the base of the
Paleogene section (Fig. III.3.1).

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Figure III.3.1 Structural pattern of the Kutai Basin (Biantoro et al, 1992)

Several theories or structural models have been put forward for the origin of the
deformation styles:
Gravity gliding (Ott, 1987)
Contractional tectonics
Wrench inversion, Strike-slip faulting (Biantoro et al, 1992)
Basement controlled deformation -extensional block/inversion (van de
Weerd and Amin, 1992)
Differential loading and inversional underlying regional overpressure
(Chambers and Daly, 1995) small 20 km Eocene fault block can be
inverted.
Delta progradation, (McClay, 1997).

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III.4 Regional Stratigraphy of Kutai Basin

Discussion on the stratigraphy of Sangatta will be following a tectonostratigraphic framework, which is according to Feriansyah et al 2000; Guritno et
al, 2000. This tectonic framework consists of the following cycles or stages from
sedimentation point of view:

1. The Paleogene Syn-rift Depositional Stage

2. The Oligocene Post-rift Sag
3. Unconformity- due renewed extensional tectonics along E-W faults
4. Early Miocene Subsidence Depositional Stage
5. Unconformity due to basin inversion
6. The Mid-Miocene-Present Syn-inversion Depositional Stage (Neogene
Delta Progradation System)
7. Regional Unconformity
8. Pliocene-Recent Depositional Stage

The Paleogene rift system is capped by a post rift carbonate deposition

represented by the Kedango Fm. The post rift depositional stage is characterized
by cessation of rifting as tectonic activity, followed by continuing subsidence
during Early Miocene with volcanism and initial delta formation.

The Mid-Miocene to present day Syn-inversion depositional stage is characterized

by inversion of the grabens/half-grabens and the uplift of the Kuching Zone,
accompanied by an eastward prograding deltaic deposition stage Renewed
extension at the end of Oligocene was not followed by a distinct type of (syn-rift)
deposition, but further subsidence during Early Miocene time, while deltaic
deposition took place during continuing basin inversion. The Neogene system is
dominated by the Sangatta delta system (Sadirsan et al, 1994).

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III.4.1 The Paleogene Syn-rift Stage

The Paleogene in this area is represented by the Eocene Mangkupa Formation and
the Beriun Sand formation, as syn-rift deposits in a graben and horst system
varied environments ranging from non-marine lacustrine, fluviatile to deep a
marine environment. Some of the Beriun sand is a fan delta deposit, an alluvial
fan which enters directly a marine environment (Sunaryo et al, 1987) while other
facies of the Beriun sand is interpreted as a submarine fan (Idris et al 1994).

The Paleogene was represented by a patch-work of graben/half-graben and horst

system, generally submerged below sea level as syn-rift deposits in a graben a
varied environments ranging from non-marine lacustrine, fluviatile to deep a
marine environment, called facies tracts (Tardjamah et al, 1997).

III.4.2 The Oligocene Sag Phase Deposition

The Sag phase actually began at Late Eocene time with the Paleogene rift system
is engulf by a by a post rift marine transgression capped by carbonate deposition
represented by the Kedango Fm (Koesoemadinata, et.al, 2007). In the SangattaBungalun area Oligocene deposition is represented by the Kedango, Pamaluan,
Kariorang formation, which over the deeper previous graben area developed into a
more marly basinal shales of the Atan formation.

III.4.3 The Neogene Deltaic Progradation Phase

During the Neogene the Sangatta Bungalun area consisted of at least 2

stratigraphic provinces; a shallow marine clastic carbonate platform in Bungalun
area, separated by a horse-shoe shaped reefal shelf edge toward the southeast, and
a delta depositional system in the Sangatta area. The shallow marine carbonate
platform also extended toward the Mangkalihat Peninsula (Koesoemadinata, et.al,
2007, 2007).

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The Neogene deltaic progradation is started as early as Early Miocene, when the
uplift in the Kuching Zone took place as the results of the collision between the
Luconia micro-continent and the Sunda subcontinent. This uplift is associated
with inversion of the Paleogene grabens. The delta sequence consists from top to
bottom: The Kampungbaru Formation, the Balikpapan Formation and the
Pulubalang Formation.

III.4.4 Recent

Recent sedimentation is represented by alluvial deposition and deltaic deposition

of the Mahakam rivers in the southern and Sangatta -Bungalun Rivers and in the
Sangkulirang estuary (northern area).

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Figure III. 4.1 Lithostratigraphy summary of Kutai Basin and its regional tectonic summary (Satyana, et.al, 1999)
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