Group 07 3102 - Sulu Sea Basin - Pete 407 1

A Case Study Presented to
Engr. Arnel M. Molina – Course Instructor/ Faculty Member

Petroleum Engineering Department
College of Engineering, Architecture and Fine Arts
BATANGAS STATE UNIVERSITY
Gov. Pablo Borbon Main Campus II
Alangilan, Batangas City
SULU SEA BASIN
BY:
Ayap, Christian D.
Castillo, Charise Ann P.
Grumo, Ezekiel J.
Vera, Joshua B.
November 2021
Republic of the Philippines
Pablo Borbon Main II, Batangas City
College of Engineering, Architecture & Fine Arts
www.batstate-u.edu.ph Tel. No. (043) 425-0139 loc. 118
CHAPTER I
I.Introduction
Oil and gas industry has already produced a large amount of energy in the
past decades that sustains and meets the demand and need of the world. This
type of energy came from the remains of organisms that lived on Earth million
years ago, these remains or sediments were buried and cooked underneath
earth’s surface with a high temperature and pressure, therefore, oil and gas are
found beneath the Earth’s surface. The formation of oil and gas is found in a
reservoir, this reservoir is composed of porous rock formation or sedimentary rock
formation beneath earth’s surface in which oil and gas has accumulated, these are
also called “hydrocarbon reservoirs” (Hanania et al., 2019). The sediments of
organisms or rocks are transported and deposited in different areas called
depositional sedimentary environments.
Depositional sedimentary environments are located everywhere and can be

seen, some were just ignored or not noticed by humans. Change is inevitable, even
the hardest rock in the world can change through time because of different
naturally occurring phenomena, like being weathered and eroded, the sediments
of that rock are transported by wind, and water then deposited in a low-lying area
of Earth or depositional sedimentary environments. These environments are
classified into three types, the continental, the marine, and the transitional
environments. These areas may be covered by layers of sediments accumulating
and may form sedimentary basins through time.
Sedimentary basins are areas where the Earth's crust has subsided,
allowing sediment to build on top of an igneous and metamorphic rock foundation.
SULU SEA BASIN: A CASE STUDY │PAGE 1

Through the compaction and heating associated with basin subsidence, these
sediments and related fluids are chemically and physically altered throughout
geologic time. The buried sediments will create a sedimentary stratigraphic record
that defines tectonic, biologic, oceanographic, and climatic events that happened
there in the past. Earth is basically made up of layered sediments, from bottom to
the surface. (National Research Council, 1997). Accordingly, there are 800 and
more known sedimentary basins in the world, some are explored and developed,
and some are waiting to be found and discovered by oil and gas fields.
Countries from different corners of the world are contributing to the

production of oil and gas because of their abundant resources. They have explored
sedimentary basins that their country has. Since oil and gas are a non-renewable
resource of energy, the place that has been beneficial or productive may take
millions of years before they become profitable again in the oil and gas field.
According to Sönnichsen (2021), the United States accounts as the biggest
producing oil in the world, having 18.6 percent crude oil production, followed by
Saudi Arabia and Russia. Currently, the Philippines, a tropical country, contributes
a little only in the production of oil and gas. As stated in Worldmeter (n.d),
Philippines ranks 71st in the global ranking of oil and gas production, that produces
only 33,258 barrels per day, and ranks 30th in the ranking of oil and gas
consumption, having a 138,500,000 barrels of oil reserves, which account 0.0% of
the world's total oil reserves of 1,650,585,140,000 barrels, in the year 2016. This
proves that the Philippines is an unexplored country for oil and gas production, and
for this industry, making this country dependent on oil imports. But the possibility
of a booming industry of oil and gas in the Philippines is still evident because this
country holds possible oil and gas reserves under sedimentary basins, hosting 16
sedimentary basins, unexplored and waiting to be matured for production.

The Philippines is known for its abundant natural resources, be it in geology

and civilization, which was proven in the past. This country possesses tourist spots
that sometimes account for the wonders of the world, some tourist spots here are
founded by different rock formations that are captivating. It is also said that this
country was formed after a series of volcanic eruptions and other geological
happenings occurred in the past, creating more than 7,000 islands.
The history of oil and gas exploration in the Philippines started way back
1896, Toledo-1 well which was drilled in Cebu Island, records of drilling in Bondoc-
Peninsula on Luzon around 1903 and other near seeps located in Mindanao, the
first two said places proved the accumulation of oil and gas but it is
uncommerciable, not enough for production, however, a good indication for future
exploration. In 1973, the first exploration offshore was done in marine areas in
North Palawan Shelf, profitable and was able to produce oil until 2019. In year
1980’s, deeper marine area of western Palawan was explored, and oil and gas
fields were discovered, including the West Linapacan Well in 1920, by the year
1990, Malampaya field was discovered by Shell, located 80 km offshore Northwest
Palawan 820 meters, largest oil field recorded until now in Philippine’s oil and gas
history. Currently, there are only three activities producing well, the Malampaya,
and Galoc in north-Palawan and Alegria in Cebu. (Bautista, 2020). In relation with
these, there are 16 known sedimentary basins, some remains unexplored and
have the potentiality of oil and gas production because of their history. The 16
sedimentary basins includes: Agusan-Davao Basin, Bicol Shelf, Cagayan Basin,
Central Luzon Basin, Cotabato Basin, East Palawan Basin, Ilocos Trough,
Mindoro-Cuyo Basin, Northwest Palawan Basin, Reed Bank Basin, Southeast
Luzon Basin, Southwest Palawan Basin, Sulu Sea Basin, Visayan Basin, West
Luzon Basin and West Masbate-Iloilo Basin.

This research aims to investigate one of the said sedimentary basins, the
Sulu Sea Basin, located in between islands of Palawan, Panay, Negros, Western
Mindanao, the Sulu Sea Archipelago and Sabah in the Northeastern coast of
Borneo. This basin is part of Sulu trench, the dividing Sulu archipelago ridge has
the seismic structure of an island arc, with a flat sea bottom in most areas due to
sedimentation. In the basins close to the northwest sides of Sulu ridge and Celebes
Island, linear troughs with a possible synclinal cross section may be seen. As a
result, this could have a lot of deposition of sediments that factors to have a good
and potential reservoir or a petroleum system.
II. Location
The Philippines is a tropical country that is made up of thousands of islands,

which were divided into three big island groups namely, Luzon, Visayas and
Mindanao (Figure 1). Sulu is one of the archipelagos found in the southwestern
part of the Philippines, these comprises three smaller islands specifically, Jolo,
Basilan, and Tawi-Tawi. This has a body of water that serves way to cross islands
in between them through the use of boats and ships. Additionally, the crust
underneath this sea is the Sulu Sea Basin, which has been prospects for oil and
gas exploration, decades and years ago.

Figure 1. The Philippines Map and Sulu Sea Basin

PhilAtlas I Map data © OpenStreetMap Contributors

Sulu Sea basin is found in a latitude and longitude of 8° 31' 8'' North and
120° 53' 44'' East, respectively. The ocean crust below this sea is the place which
sediments are accumulated overtime, thus, the Sulu Sea Basin. Basically, Sulu
Sea Basin is located in between islands of Palawan, Panay, Negros, Western
Mindanao, the Sulu Sea Archipelago and Sabah in the Northeastern coast of
Borneo. Sulu Sea Basin is divided into two basins by the Cagayan Ridge, the
Northwest Sulu Sea Basin and the Southeast Sulu Sea Basin (Figure 2),
additionally, Sulu Sea Basin, also, has a sub-basin named as Sandakan sub-basin.
Sandakan
sub basin
Figure 2. NW Sulu Sea Basin Map, SE Sea Basin Map and Sandakan Sub-Basin
Photo © Abangan and Revilla (n.d.)
According to Abando and Ansay, (2002), total area of the Sulu Sea Basin
is approximately 115,000 sq km with maximum sediment thickness of about 6.0
kilometers.

III. Demographics
The province covers 4,547.16 square kilometers (1755.67 square miles) of

territory. According to the 2020 Census, it has a population of 1,000,108 people.
This accounted for 22.71 percent of the total population of the Bangsamoro
Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, 3.81 percent of the overall population of
the Mindanao Island group, and 0.92 percent of the Philippines' total population.
According to these estimates, the population density is 220 people per square
kilometer or 570 people per square mile. The age group with the most people in
Sulu, according to the 2015 Census, is 5 to 9, with 120,542 people. The age group
with the smallest population, with 1,370 people, is 80 and older.
Sulu's residents are mostly Muslim, accounting for about all the province's
population in 2015. From the 14th century onwards, the bulk of Sulu's Muslim
population follows Sunni Islam in the Shafi'i school, as taught by Arab, Persian,
Indian Muslim, Chinese Muslim, and Malaccan missionaries. Relatively recent
Islamic sects, known as the Tableegh, have been active in preaching what they
claim to be a "purer" Islamic style of life and worship, largely introduced by
returning veterans of the Afghan wars and missionaries from Pakistan's stricter
Sufi traditions. A tiny percentage of those who married into Iranian or Iraqi families
since then have converted to Shiite Islam.
The Tausugs, although being a mixed Muslim community, dominate the

Sulu Archipelago. The Tausug were among the Philippines' early converts to
Islam, both as a faith and a way of life. Because of their intimate ties to the water,
they are referred to as "people of the stream." Sulu's lingua franca is the Tausug
language. The indigenous Sama is the other local language, which is spoken in a
variety of tones and dialects. Sinama dialects arose because of this diversity.

Sinama Sibutu (spoken mostly in the Sibutu-Sitangkai Region), Sinama Simunul

(concentrated in the Simunul-Manuk-Mangkaw Islands), Sinama Kapoan (spoken
primarily in the South Ubian-Tandubas and Sapa-Sapa Regions), and Sinama
Banguingui (spoken primarily in the Sibutu-Sitangkai Region) (concentrated in
Buan Island and spoken by Banguingui people).
The Bajau-Sama language is also spoken, as are Tagalog (Filipino) and

English, the official languages of the Philippines. Many natives and barter traders
speak Sabah Malay, and Christian and Muslim residents who retain touch and
trade with the mainland Zamboanga Peninsula and Basilan speak Chavacano.
Because of the large migration of Cebuano settlers to Mindanao, many Muslims
can communicate in Cebuano, particularly among the Tausug, who speak a related
Visayan language called Tausug.

IV. Mode of Transportation
Regarding the study of the location, this research also aims to provide
information on the various modes of transportation available in the Philippines'
southwestern region. Knowing that the location offers a sense of what the
researchers would use as a mode of transportation.
Figure 3. Metro Manila to Zamboanga Port
The Zamboanga Port is the nearest port to the Sulu Sea. The travel starts
at Metro Manila which is the country's capital city. The fastest way to travel from
Manila to Port of Zamboanga is by taking a plane flight which will only take 1hr and
40 mins. While taking a long ride travelling through highways, tolls, and ferries it
will take 42 hours. Head south on Quezon Blvd/R-8 toward FR Hidalgo St which is
1.1 km. Drive from W Service Rd, AH26/Manila S Rd, Pan-Philippine Highway,
Rolando R. Andaya Hwy and Pan-Philippine Highway/AH26 to Matnog which will
take 13 hr 29 min (583 km). Continue on Pan-Philippine Highway/AH26 to San

Ricardo which will take 8 hr 27 min (420 km). Take the Eastern Nautical
Hwy/Surigao City - San Ricardo ferry to Surigao City travel time would be 1 hr 12
min (21.6 km). Continue on Pan-Philippine Highway/AH26. Take Butuan -
Cagayan de Oro - Iligan Rd, Claveria Rd, Butuan - Cagayan de Oro - Iligan Rd
and Linamon - Zamboanga Rd to Pan-Philippine Highway/AH26 in Zamboanga
which will take 16 hr 58 min (795 km).
Figure 4. Zamboanga Port to Sulu Sea
The distance from Zamboanga port to the Sulu Sea is 222 km, there are
some ferries or boats that are available for just exploration and sea viewing of the
sea.

V. Objectives
The general objective of the study is the potentiality of the Sulu Sea Basin
as an oil and gas reservoir. This study specifically aims to:
A. Determine the coverage extent of the Sulu Sea basin and its age.
B. Determine the lithology of wells drilled in the Sulu Sea Basin.
C. Identify source, reservoir, and cap rock including age and formation name
present in the Sulu Sea Basin.
D. Know the seismic interpretation, well description and summaries based on
the data presented.
E. Estimate oil and/or gas reserves/ resources that might be present in the
Sulu Sea Basin.
VI. Scope and Limitations of the Study
The focus of this study is the Sulu Sea Basin. This study covers the
geological structure of the Sulu Sea Basin and the tectonic history based on the
seismic reflection data combined with the findings of the previous onshore and
offshore geological research studies. The researchers aim to gain a deeper
understanding of the Sulu Sea Basin with the help of the previous research studies
and give further analysis of the potentiality of Sulu Sea Basin as a petroleum
source.
The study would be done through utilization of the data and samples
collected that are associated with the topic. The data and information gathered in
this case study is limited to the data and information available online. With the use
of internet, the researchers were able to collect and consolidate data, filtering
websites that are reliable for this case study.

Chapter II
I. Background
Sulu Sea mainly, is composed of different islands such as Cuyo Islands and
Cagayan Islands which are part of Palawan province, Mapun, and Turtle Islands
of Tawi-tawi. Tubbataha Reef National Marine Park is also found in this area, along
with this is its basin. Sulu Sea Basin has been one of the prospects of oil and gas
companies in the Philippines and other countries. Truthfully, many wells were
already drilled in this basin before. Sulu Sea basin, approximately having 260,000
square kilometer surface area, is an oceanic basin enclosed by the islands of
Palawan, Sulu Archipelago and other continental islands of Borneo. Sulu Sea
Basin is covered by both Malaysia and Philippines because it reaches out the
northeast portion of Sabah which is a Malaysian territory up to Negros Trench of
the Philippines. mentioned by Tamesis (1990), this smaller sub-basin which is the
Sandakan, collectively known as the Western Sulu Basin, have been the subject
of active oil and gas exploration over the past two decades.
Sulu Sea basin is a delta superimposed basin on a back arc basin, which is
formed when a tectonic plate sinks under one another. Additionally, the oceanic
crust in the northeastern part of the basin is rather flat and overlain by a thin
sedimentary layer. The Sulu Sea basin fill is made up of Tertiary marine clastic
rocks lying on a Cretaceous to Paleogene basement. The Sandakan sub-basin is
covered by fluvial-deltaic facies that is nearly nine kilometers thick. Extensional
block faulting and subsequent wrenching are suggested by basin deformation in
the Neogene and younger sections. The Paleogene section beneath it is usually
distorted and probably thrusted. In the Sandakan sub-basin, growth faults linked
with fluvial-deltaic deposition generated rotating fault blocks. (SEA, 2003)

The Sulu Sea is thought to have formed as a result of the subduction of the
Proto-South China Sea SCS and/or the Celebes Sea, or as a peripheral basin
comparable to the SCS. The Sulu Sea's evolution history is constrained by those
of the surrounding terranes and sea basins, which are also perplexing. The
potential of the Sulu Sea Basin cannot be denied because many of the wells drilled
here have shown the presence of gas deposits. In fact, many companies,
internationally, show interest in drilling this basin because it can help the
Philippines sustain its energy resources and minimize their dependency to oil and
gas imports.
II. Tectonic Settings of SE Asia
Southeast Asia tectonics involved long-term convergence of various plates,

including the proto-Philippine Sea Plate, proto–South China Sea, proto-Pacific
Plate and the Indo-Australian Plate. Presumably, these plates had occupied the
region until the early Cenozoic when marginal basin openings resulted to the
current tectonic framework of the region (Rangin & Le Pichon, n.d.).
Consequent to Cenozoic basinal opening and attendant plate subduction

are the accretion and/or subduction of oceanic and continental-derived fragments;
oceanic plateaus or seamounts, formation of island arc systems and uplift of the
overriding plate attributed to subduction-related deformations.
Tectonic reconstruction models of Southeast Asia all invoke in the early

Cenozoic the collision of Mesozoic oceanic plates, which have been fragmented,
consumed along subduction zones or emplaced onto the overriding plate.
Major faults that seemed to radiate from the Assam-Yunnan syntaxis that is
illustrated in the figure 5 below and paid no attention to the oroclines. Hutchison

(1994) proposed a modification of escape tectonics that could explain both the
faults and oroclines of Southeast Asia. The indentation of Asia by India is held
responsible for the oroclines and the mechanism requires regional right-lateral
wrench faulting or clockwise rotation, and this was a major goal of paleomagnetic
research. The proof was excellent for the Khorat Basin of the Indochina Block. The
opposite curvature of the Anambas Zone orocline, extending from Borneo through
Billiton and Bangka, results from anticlockwise rotation for Borneo and southern
Peninsular Malaysia, confirmed by paleomagnetic research (Mc Cabe et al., 1987).

Figure 5. Tectonic setting of Southeast Asia and the collision zone formed
between the Eurasian and Indo-Australian plates.
The collision of the different plates in the early Cenozoic provided the main
triggering mechanism for the opening of present-day marginal basins that surround
the Philippine arc and other regions in SE Asia. As in the case of the South China
Sea, the Sulu Sea and the West Philippine Basin, these Cenozoic marginal basins

also feature plateaus, aseismic ridges, fracture zones and submerged volcanic
arcs that are currently subducting underneath the Philippine arc. Similarly,
consequent to the marginal basin opening are the fragmentation and eventual
emplacement or consumption along subduction zones of Mesozoic oceanic plates
in SE Asia (Yumul Jr. et al., 2003).
III. Tectonic History of the Basin
The NW Sulu Sea has thicker crust (>10 km) than the SE Sulu Sea (>6 km),
and the former is also significantly shallower (1,000–1,800 m) than the latter
(maximum depth: 4,500–5,000 m) (Murauchi et al., 1973; Rangin & Silver, 1990).
The SE Sulu Sea basement paleomagnetic anomalies span from C7 (23.96 Ma)
in the northwest to C5 (9.79 Ma) in the southeast (Gradstein et al., 2012; Roeser,
1991; Shyu et al., 1991). The Ocean Drilling Program (ODP Leg 124) drilled one
hole in the SE Sulu Sea (Site 768) that penetrated 1,046 meters of sedimentary
and pyroclastic rocks and 222 meters of basement rocks (pillow/massive basalts,
dolerite, and micro-gabbros). The earliest overlaying layers are late Early Miocene
claystone with narrow turbidite interbeds (Scherer, 1991). The claystone is overlain
by thick (197 m) volcaniclastics composed primarily of dacitic-rhyolitic tuff and
lapillistone that is thought to have erupted in a shallow marine-subaerial
environment. The underlying brown claystone includes radiolarian from the late
Early to Early Middle Miocene and has low carbonate concentrations, implying
sub-CCD (carbonate compensation depth) deposition and so regional sinking.
Pelagic carbonates initially developed after the Miocene at 2.4 Ma and increasingly
dominated at 1.9 Ma (paleomagnemtic age), indicating fast CCD deepening.

IV. Stratigraphy
Stratigraphy is the classification of different layers or layering of

sedimentary deposits; it is also a key knowledge in the analysis of a basin. This
allows for the identification of play elements, reservoir, source and seal and
analyzes their relationship. For both basins, the formation names were adopted
from the stratigraphic nomenclature used by the Malaysian Geological Survey in
Borneo Region (GEOLOGICAL SURVEY, 2020).

Figure 6. Generalized Stratigraphy of the Sulu Sea Basin

• Crystalline Basement is found in the northeast and central Tawi-Tawi

and neighboring island consisting of serpentinites and peridotites. These
basement rocks are pre-Tertiary.
• Chert Spilite Formation (Economic Basement) termed by Fitch (1955)
outcrops in Balambangan and Banggi Islands, which is estimated to be
9000 meters thick. It also outcrops in South Palawan and Balabac area. It
is Late Cretaceous to Early Eocene in age and unconformably overlies the
crystalline basement.
• Crocker Formation was originally proposed by Wilson (1961) and was
extensively observed in outcrops in Labuk Bay and Banggi area. The thinly
bedded sandstones and shale ranges in thickness from 6000 to 9000
meters and is of Late Eocene to Oligocene in age.
• Segama Group consists of three (3) formations where the majority is found
in the area of the Dent Peninsula. These are the Ayer Formation, Libong
Formation and Tongku Formation. The group is characterized by the
presence of abundant submarine pyroclastic rocks of intermediate to basic
composition interbedded with marine clastic sediments.
• Dent Group in the southeastern Dent Peninsula also consists of three (3)
formations. The Sebahat, Ganduman and Togopi Formations. The
Sebahat Formations has a thickness of up to 2300 meters along the western
flank of the Sebahat anticline. This deltaic deposit was accompanied by
distal reef growth sometimes on subsiding volcanic high. The age of the
Dent Group ranges from Late Miocene to Pleistocene and unconformably
overlies the Segama Group (Abando & Ansay, September 2002, Page 7, 8,
and 9).

V. Structural Elements of the Basin
The Sulu Sea's structure is explained using seismic reflection data mixed
with the findings of onshore and offshore geological research, as well as the results
of ODP Leg 124 drilling. The formation of the structurally complex Sulu-Borneo
collision belt was caused by the closing of a hypothetical Mesozoic proto-South
China Sea associated with the formation of oceanic crustal splinters in the late
Eocene, followed by southward subduction and, in turn, progressive collision of the
north Palawan continental terrane with the micro-continental Borneo plate since
the middle Miocene.
North Sabah, southern and central Palawan, and the northwest Sulu basin
are all part of the others. During the late Oligocene to early Miocene, the Borneo
microcontinental plate fractured into the Sulu and Cagayan ridges, resulting in the
emergence of the southeast Sulu basin. The collision of the north Palawan
continental terrane with the Cagayan Ridge in the late early Miocene, as well as
the oblique collision of these blocks with the central Philippines, resulting in the
continuous closure of the southeast Sulu basin since the middle or late Miocene.
The creation of an oceanic crustal slab commenced the closing of the southeast
Sulu basin.
VI. Exploration History
In the Sulu Sea area, the total footage for seismic acquisition is more than
10,000 line-km in the East Palawan Basin and 3,000 line-km in the Sulu Sea Basin.
In 1973, Triton Philippines dug two wells in the Bancauan sub-basin to test the
Middle Miocene sandstones. The Sulu Sea A-1 well was drilled to 2,617 meters,
while the Sulu Sea B-1 well was drilled to 2,222 meters. 147 This was followed by
Superior Oil's Sulu Sea 333-1 (T.D. 4102 m) and Sulu Sea 409-1 (T.D. 4602 m)

wells, which were drilled in 1974 to assess the Middle Miocene sandstone in
anticlinal structures. Both wells were abandoned as dry holes after being plugged.
Sun Oil drilled Sulu Sea 389-1 (T.D. 3666 m) in 1975 to test the Late Miocene
sandstone in the upper half of a fault-bounded structure, but it was abandoned as
well.
In 1975, the Cities Service drilled Coral-1 (T.D. 3063 m) in the Balabac sub-
basin to test Oligocene-Early Miocene clastics, but no hydrocarbon was found.
Sentry Bank-1 (T.D. 3049 m) drilled by Arco in 1976, Clotilde-1 (T.D. 2287 m)
drilled by Amoco in 1982, and Dockan – 1 (T.D. 2743 m) drilled by Podco in 1989
are the other wells sunk here. These wells demonstrated the presence of possible
reservoirs and source rocks in the basins, even though no significant discoveries
were made. Throughout this time, geophysical surveys in the basins were carried
out on a regular basis, with detailed grid line spacing as tiny as 2 km and covering
a substantial portion of the offshore area.
Arco Philippines began petroleum exploration in the Sulu Sea Basin in the
1990s, acquiring 2D and 3D seismic data and drilling four wells. In 1998, the Hippo-
1 well (TD 3940 m) was dug, followed by the Wildebeest-1 well (TD 3710 m) in
2000. In the thin Miocene sandstones, both wells encountered only gas and
minimal oil shows. Arco dug the Rhino – 1 and Zebra – 1 well in 2004 in search of
Mid- to Late Miocene shelf sands, however they were filled and abandoned as dry
holes. With the entry of Tap Oil, Mitra Energy, Ranhill Berhad, and the interest
exhibited by ExxonMobil, the drilling results did not lower the basin's potential.

Chapter III
Data and Methods
The researchers provide data and information about Sulu Sea Basin. The
method used are the analysis of the schematic play concept types for petroleum
system, acquisition of seismic data and interpretation, as well as the well data and
other data available online and are from reliable resources. Also, with the help of
Department of Energy, in which previous seismic records and data saved were
analyzed.
I. Schematic Play Concept Types for Petroleum System in the Basin
The petroleum system is defined as the set of geological factors that when
combined give the conditions necessary for hydrocarbon accumulations. By
understanding the petroleum system in the basin, the potential resources
generated, migrated and trapped can be assessed properly.
A. Source Rocks
Potential source rocks in the basins consist of Early to Late Miocene

sediments. These sections penetrated by the wells drilled in the basins have
been analyzed for total organic content (TOC), pyrolysis and visual kerogen
analysis. The Early Miocene section shows very poor source quality with
very lean organic carbon content. The gray shales in the Middle Miocene
section show average to above average organic content with vitrinitic
kerogens present. It has fair to good hydrocarbon generating potential if it
reaches optimum maturity.

B. Reservoir Rocks
Early to Middle Miocene quartzose sandstone section penetrated by

333-1 well with gross thickness of 1300m show porosities in the range of
17-18% and permeabilities between 30 and 107md based on core analysis.
The oil show logged in this well occurred in this interval. The 409-1 well also
encountered thick inner neritic porous sandstone with thickness of 1650m
and measured porosities of sidewall cores between 18 to 24%. Log
calculations indicate 12 to 21% with the wet gas shows recorded within this
section. Porosities of 13 to 22% were calculated from the log of the Sentry
Bank-1 well. These data are all from the wells drilled in Sandakan sub-
basin.
Late Miocene rocks encountered in Sandakan sub-basin showed

measured or log derived porosities of 19-35% in 333-1 well; 11-26% in 409-
1 well; 18-25% in Clotilde-1 well and 20-34% in Sentry Bank-1 well.
C. Seals
Potential seals are mostly interbedded claystones and siltstones

overlying the Sebahat Formation or its equivalent for the Early to Middle
Miocene reservoir rocks. Interbedded sections of claystones, shales and
siltstones encountered in the Sandakan sub-basin wells are all potential seals
for the Late Miocene reservoir rocks.

Petroleum Play types
The petroleum play types identified in the Sulu Sea basin are the carbonate
reef buildup (RB), anticline (AN) and fault block (FB) plays. The confirmation of the
AN and FB plays was based on the Nymphe North – 1 oil and gas discovery and
Nymphe – 1 gas producer which are both on the Malaysian side of the basin. The
RB play is yet to be confirmed in the basin.
Prospect and Leads
The PhilPRA Project compiled 21 structures in the Sulu Sea basin

consisting of 18 prospects (10 FB, 4 RB and 4 AN) and 3 leads (1 FB and 2 RB).
The average probability of discovery in the basin is 5%.

II. Seismic Interpretation
Figure 7. Main structural-geological elements of the Sulu Sea, based on Hinz etal. (1991) and
Rangin (1989). The seismic cross sections are given in Figure 2. The zones of seismic
characteristics refer to the young active Sulu Trench, shown in Figure 2, and discussed by Hinz et
al. (1991).

Figure 8. ,Selected seismic cross sections to illustrate the structure of the Sulu Sea.
1 = from Hinz (1983);
2 = from Rangin (1989);
3 = from Hinz et al. (1991).

Figure 9. The Ocean Drilling Programme (ODP) drill sites of the Sulu Sea, based on Silver et al.
(1989a, b,c). The core lithologies are as follows: 1 = nannofossil or nannofossil-foraminiferal marl;
2 = hemipelagic sediments including clay or silt (stone); 3 = pelagic brown claystone; 4 =
terrigenous turbidites; 5 = quartz siltstone and sandstone; 6 = graded carbonate turbidites; 7 =
fine ash tuff; 8 = pumiceous rhyolitic to dacitic coarse tuff and lapilli stone; 9 = andesitic to
basaltic coarse tuff and lapilli stone; 10 = pillow basalt; 11 = basalt sheet flow; 12 = brecciated
massive basalt; 13 = diabase sill.

For Northwest Sulu Sea Basin
The "Sabah-Palawan Orogenic Belt" (Rangin, 1989) and the "Borneo-Sulu

Collision Belt" (Rangin, 1989) have been given to the ancient region of the SuIu
Sea (Hinz et al., 1991). Seismic profiles (Fig. 8) indicate that it is made up of a
stack of basaltic oceanic crustal slabs (like roof tiles), each over thrusting to the
northwest and dipping to the southeast. On the islands of Palawan and Banggi,
these thrust sheets propel ophiolitic basement rocks to the surface. The basement
is overlain by a seismically incoherent deposit that has been linked to the
Paleogene Crocker Formation of Sabah by Rangin (1989) and Hinz et al. (1991).
On the severely deformed Crocker Formation, a thick overlaying sub-

horizontally stratified unit of 0.5 to 3.5 s (two-way time) thickness rests with a
marked late Lower Miocene regional unconformity. Bol and Van Hoorn (1980)
labeled the early Miocene unconformity the "Deep Regional Unconformity" since it
is found across the region.
For Cagayan Ridge
The ridge appears to be the rifted boundary of the earlier Borneo-SuIu

Collision Belt, down faulted into the SE SuIu Sea marginal basin proper, based on
seismic sections (Fig. 8), ODP cores (Fig. 9) and dredge samples (Kudrass et al.,
1990). Lapillistone, tuff, and basalt flows from the early Miocene to the early Middle
Miocene characterize this rifted boundary (Silveret al., 1989a,b,c). Calc-alkaline
basaltic andesite, dacite, and rhyolite tuff were among the dredged materials
(Kudrass et al., 1990).

On inclined basement rocks and intervening half graben basins, the calc-
alkaline volcanic arc may be seen superimposed. One obvious conclusion is that
the Cagayan Ridge is an actively rifting Early to Early Middle Miocene volcanic arc.
For Southeast Sulu Sea Basin
In the marginal sea proper, Hinz et al. (1991) identified four structural zones
(Fig. 8).
Zone I, with a width of 140 kilometers, makes up the majority of the area.
The igneous basement is smooth and bears the seismic signature of conventional
oceanic crust, with a few basaltic seamounts thrown in for good measure (Fig. ).
The basaltic layer is covered by a sedimentary formation that is 1 to 2 seconds
thick (two-way time). The minimum age of sea floor spreading commencement is
19 Ma, whereas ODP Site 768 has been dated at 15 Ma (Fig. 9). The oldest strata
on top of the basaltic basement are late Lower Miocene radiolarian red clay, which
is overlain by 250 meters of acid pyroclastic tuffs, implying that the SE Sulu Sea
basin formed as an intra-arc basin in the early Miocene.
Zone II, the active Sulu-Negros trench is 7 to 25 kilometers wide. Zone I's
marine lithosphere descends E to SE with 11-degree dips beneath Zone III.
Zone III has imbricated thrust sheets (Fig. 9), which are indicative of an
accretionary wedge, and is 15 to 35 km wide.
Zone IV consists of a crustal splinter of oceanic foundation that supports a

narrow fore-arc basin, which is bordered abruptly to the southeast by the
Zamboanga volcanic arc complex.

As a result, the lithosphere of the early Miocene SE Sulu Sea marginal basin
is currently subducting beneath Zamboanga and N egros in a very immature
subduction system beneath Zamboanga and N egros. It's worth noting that the
Sulu Trench isn't responsible for the earlier Sulu Archipelago-Sempoma volcanic
arc, and that it ends in Sabah and doesn't extend southwestward.
For Sandakan Sub-basin
Figure 10. Study area seismic lines. The area of interest is enclosed within the polygon. Dip lines
are trending NW-SE while strike lines trend NE-SW.

Figure 11. Representative seismic section for the study area showing the structural interpretation
and seismic sequence analysis.
Normal and reverse faults with a NW-SE trend are found (Figure 11), and
they generally continue deep into the subsurface (>5 s TWT) before terminating
against a probable detachment layer. A number of planar faults become growth
faults. The strike lengths of these seismic scale extensional faults are tens of
kilometers long, with moderate to deep dips trending basinwards (NE). Active
normal faults have created fault scarps that have a substantial impact on the area's
seabed morphology.
On the hanging wall of the growth faults, thickened packages present proof
of synkinematic deposition. The uniform thickness of the packages across the
faults, as well as the change in the main seismic facies type, indicate post-
kinematic deposits. Thrust faults sloping to the west run along the shelf's toe.
Fault-propagation folds have formed as a result of these toe thrusts. The

faults are seismic in scale and have mild landward dips (SW). The uneven seafloor
topography suggests that these faults are active. Ponded synclines, when
synkinematic deposits develop more thickness on one limb of the fold, are another
feature. As new toe thrusts occur deeper in the basin, sediment bundles continue
to thin and taper. It's worth noting that extensional processes predominate in the

study area's proximal regions, while compressional processes predominate in the

distal portions.
From the seismic data, twelve horizons were chosen (Figure 11). To get a
perspective of the topography of the research area, the seabed was first
interpreted. The detachment layer, where most faults appear to terminate, was the
deepest horizon analyzed. The Deep Regional Unconformity (DRU) (Horizon 1-
cyan) is the following horizon, which was likewise interpreted as a sequence
boundary based on the well data. Erosional truncations and multiple downlaps
identified this horizon.
The top of the Sebahat Formation, the Shallow Regional Unconformity

(SRU) horizon (Horizon 6 - light orange), was identified as a surface downlapped
by reflections in the underlying prograding seismic packages, particularly in the
central section of the research area. Erosional truncations characterize the
Pliocene Unconformity (Horizon 10 - pink), which is downlapped by low amplitude
reflections. Seismic reflector terminations, changes in seismic facies character,
and choosing key surfaces discovered from wells were used to further segment
the packages enclosed by these horizons. Horizons 2, 3, 4, and 5 were all identified
as, well sequence boundaries, whereas Horizons 7 and 8 were identified as
flooding surfaces.
III. Well Data
According to DOE (2003), 16 wells were drilled in the Sulu Sea and East
Palawan Basins, 4 wells out of 16 wells drilled shows the presence of gas or oil.
12 out of 16 wells drilled came from Sulu Sea basin and its sub basin, Sandakan
Basin.

WELL NAME LOCATION DATE SPUDDED DEPTH RESULTS

(M)
SULU SEA A-1 Sulu Sea 12/22/1972 2,617 DRY
SULU SEA B-1 Sulu Sea 03/01/1973 2,221 DRY
PEC 333-1 SULU SEA Sandakan 10/30/1973 4,101 DRY
CLOTILDE-1 Sandakan 02/23/1982 2,286 DRY

SENTRY BANK REEF- Sandakan 02/12/1987 1,462 DRY
1 (SBR-1)
1 ST (SBR-1 ST)

1A
DOCKAN-1 Sulu Sea 06/29/1989 2,479 DRY w/ gas
shows
HIPPO-1 Sandakan 02/13/1998 3,939 Gas & oil
shows
WILDEBEEST-1 Sulu Sea 07/09/2000 3,709 DRY w/ gas
shows
Table 1. 12 wells drilled in Sulu Sea Basin with its sub-basin, Sandakan Basin
The results shows that 3 wells show the presence of gas and/or oil, 2 out
of this are from Sulu Sea Basin and 1 from Sandakan basin that shows the gas
and oil presence.

However, there are data from The Philodrill Corporation (2019) that
explored the Sandakan basin.
Figure 12. Six exploratory wells in Area 7, Sandakan, sub-basin of the Sulu Sea
From the figure 12 above the location of the wells are illustrated as well as
their corresponding interpretation of presence of oil and gas. Dockan-1, Hippo-1
and Lumba Lumba A1 showed the presence of gas, Wildebeest-1 showed oil
presence and Rhino-1 together with Zebra-1 showed a dry hole.

Figure 13. Lithology based on Wells Drill

Figure 14. Wells Drilled at the Sandakan, Sulu Sea Sub-Basin

Table 2. Interpretation of the Wells based on Pressure test

Upon exploration, there are two main challenges found in the study area,
first is that Reservoir Fairway model failed to predict reservoir distribution, the
Attribute Analysis and Spectral Decomposition and two, vertical migration of
hydrocarbons to the reservoir targets was unsuccessful due to the over-pressured
section acts as a vertical barrier as well as mapping of the over-pressured zone
through in the 3D seismic volume velocity data.
Also, according to the Bluelake Energy, previous wells drilled on SC-56 and
SC-41 prove the hydrocarbon play with a number of gas condensate discoveries
in the Miocene. SC-56 and SC-41 are found in the figure below.
Figure 15. SC 56 location

Year Well Result

2009 Dabakan-1 Gas Find
2000 Wildebeest-1 Oil/gas discovery from

Miocene sandstone
1998 Hippo-1 Oil/gas find in Upper

Miocene
1994 Mutiara Hitam-1 4MMcf/d + 20b/d from

Middle Miocene
1975 Nymphe-1 15.3MMcf/d + 94b/d

from Miocene
Nymphe North-1 3.9MMcf/d + 504b/d

from Middle Miocene
409-1 1650m gross pay 18%-

24% porosity
Sentry Bank-1 13%-22% porositY
333-1 1300m gross, 17%-

15% poro, 107Md
Table 3. Well Names Drilled and their Result

The wells shown in the Figure 15 is tabulated with their corresponding

results. Based on these, the following information in then said.
Initial rates of up to 15MMcf/d and 100b/d appear to be possible in Miocene

channel sand reservoirs.
The gross reservoir pay in the area of SC 56 appears to be up to 1650m

(5410ft), which is significant.
Reservoir quality (when present) looks to be good as well, with porosities

ranging from 13% to 24% and reservoir quality up to 100mD.
Sulu Sea- Nymphe Norde I, Sabah - The Nymphe Norde 1 in the

Sandakan basin sector of the Sulu Sea (Fig. 16), flowed 500 BC/d and 3.9
MMCFG/d from Lower Miocene reservoir sandstones.
Sulu Sea-Superior Oil 333-1 - Fluorescence and cut were noted in a

sandstone at 10,560 ft drill depth. A core of the interval demonstrated oil staining
and porosity of 20 percent in the top two feet of the core. A drill stem test of the
interval 10,560 to 10,576 ft recovered 7,370 ft of water with one percent 27° API
crude.
Seismic interpretations involving more recent data demonstrate that the

only two wells in the basin, Sulu Sea A-I and Sulu Sea B-1, are in reality little
more than stratigraphic tests.
Neither of the subject wells tested a significant, if any, four-way dip closure,
especially the 3-1 well. An unevaluated, porous zone (gas kick which led to stuck
pipe and termination of the A-I well) was never tested.

Although some new seismic data was collected in the Sandakan Basin
during the late 1980's, the last two wells drilled still focused on prospect areas
identified in the 1970's. There are other prospects to consider. Also, deeper
prospect leads that could have a better spatial relation to mature oil source
sediments need to be explored (Lee, 1970; Hinz et al., 1991; Walker et al., 1992).
The Superior Oil 333-1 well which has one of the better shows of oil in the
Philippine sector of the Sulu Sea was likely not drilled at an optimum structural
position. Nearby, 5.5 km (3.0 mi) to the south is a four-way dip closure with 5,000
ha (12,800 ac) of areal closure which is 300 m (1,000 ft) structurally higher than
the 333-1 well.
In relation with this, upon exploration of the SC56, presence of hydrocarbon

was found and discovered. This was reported to Jadestone Energy Inc. by Symms
et.al (2018), the following logs were reported and then interpreted for further
production of the well. Shown in the Figure 12, the location of the three wells that
have the significant symbol of gas discovery, these wells are, Palendag, Dabakan
and Babendil wells, the first two well data is then discussed.
The Dabakan and Palendag discoveries are located within the boundaries
of the Block SC56 in the Sandakan Basin, offshore Philippines, approximately 150
km off the coast of Malaysia (Figure 15). The Dabakan field was discovered in
2009 by the exploration Well Dabakan-1 in a water depth of 1802m. The Palendag
field was discovered in 2010 by the exploration Well Palendag-1A in a water depth
of 1,937m, and sits to the east of Dabakan-1. Jadestone holds a net working
interest of 25% in SC56, with the remaining 75% being held by the operator,
TOTAL E&P Philippines BV. The current exploration phase in Block SC56 ends in
September 2020 and the block expiry is in August 2055.

The Dabakan-1 well was drilled to a total depth of 4,813 mTVDSS. It

encountered eight hydrocarbon pay reservoirs (all gas/condensate), all within Late
Miocene turbidites deposited in a deep-water setting. The Dabakan discovery
structure is a thrust fault-bound propagation anticlinal fold, located in the anticlinal
hanging-wall of a NW-SE trending toe thrust which defines the eastern boundary
(Figure 16).
The Palendag-1A well was drilled to a total depth of 4,724 mTVDSS. It

encountered four hydrocarbon pay reservoirs (all gas/condensate), all within a
slightly older Late Miocene sequence than in Well Dabakan-1. The Palendag
discovery has a similar structural setting to Dabakan, associated with a separate
thrust fault (Figure 16).

Figure 16. Schematic seismic line through Dabakan and Palendag

A composite log data set was provided (Gamma Ray, Resistivity, Sonic and
Density/Neutron) that were a combination of wireline and LWD data. Wireline
formation pressures were also obtained but that they were not examined. Nuclear
Magnetic Resonance data were also obtained but these data were not available.
Shale volume was determined from the Gamma Ray, with a normal linear
equation; the endpoints were based on the 2% and 98% percentiles varied for
different intervals as deemed necessary. A comparison with the operator derived
shale volume shows very good agreement (the method used by the operator is not
known but it would appear to be based on the Gamma Ray).
Effective porosity was determined from the Density/Neutron crossplot with

shale corrections applied. The mud filtrate density assumed to be 0.9 g/c3 as the
well was drilled with an oil-based mud. A hydrocarbon correction was not applied
as it was not considered necessary given the relative response of the
Density/Neutron data. Good agreement can be observed between the operator’s
and the ERCE computed values.
Water saturation was determined using the Indonesian equation. The

Archie parameters of a, m and n were taken as 1, 1.91 (based on the rotary core
samples by the original well operator) and 2 respectively. Rw was determined from
a Pickett plot that indicated an Rw of 0.123 ohmm at reservoir temperature (no
temperature data were available to compute a well temperature profile). A higher
Rw of 0.176 ohmm at BHT was determined for the L60 sands that is consistent
with the water sample recovered (as per the original ExxonMobil report). The shale
resistivity was taken as 2 ohmm. Overall agreement can be observed between the
operator’s and the ERCE computed values albeit with the operator values being
about 5% lower in the main gas bearing sands. With the information available the

operator has probably used a lower Rw of 0.11 ohmm (obtained from a wireline
formation test sample) as given in the report by ExxonMobil and also a different
equation (Modified Simandoux). Using this method and different Rw the
discrepancy between the operator and ERCE becomes negligible and as this
approach is considered to be just as valid no issues in the operator’s evaluation
are felt to exist.
The following logs are the logs found in hydrocarbon pay reservoir in the
two wells, hydrocarbons initinially in place
Figure 17. Well Dabakan-1 L300 S1 CPI


Figure 20. Well Dabakan-1 L100 Intra CPI

Figure 23. Well Dabakan-1 L80 CPI

Figure 24. Well Palendag-1A L60 CPI
Figure 25. Well Palendag-1A L50 CPI

Figure 26. Well Palendag-1A L40 S2 CPI
Figure 27: Well Palendag-1 A L20 CPI

Well Test and Permeability
No DSTs were carried out in either of the wells. No cores were cut and
therefore there is no direct measurement of permeability. Downhole samples were
collected in both wells across all gas bearing reservoirs (apart from the L225 S1
and L80 reservoirs in Well Dabakan-1), thus confirming the presence of mobile
gas.
Pressure measurements made in Well Dabakan-1 with a reservoir

description tool (“RDT”) give an indication of mobility. The L225 S1 reservoir
appears, from MDT derived mobilitiy, to be relatively poor. All other reservoirs
appear to be of fair quality. The L80 reservoir has neither MDT pressures nor a
sample. However, the presence of gas is inferred from log data. The reservoir
quality of the L80 appears to be relatively poor, based on log character. In contrast
log character of the L100 S1 suggests that it is a good quality reservoir and it is
also the reservoir with the greatest pay.
There is no defined development plan for the Dabakan and Palendag

discoveries and as Jadestone are not the operator of SC56 the commitment to and
timing of any development is unclear. There is a further risk that any volumes are
uneconomic and as such we have assigned a chance of development of 35% to
each discovery.
Accordingly, as ODP analyses the area of the Sulu Sea basin, LEG 124
was conducted in the said basin, yielding to these results.
During Leg 124 of the Ocean Drilling Program, three sites were drilled in the
southeast Sulu Sea Basin (Fig. 28).

Site 768 is located in the deep part of this basin. The basaltic basement at
1047 mbsf is overlain by pelagic brown clay dated by radiolarians as early Miocene
{Stichocorys wolffii Zone). It follows a series of 200 m of pyroclastic rhyolitic flows
and coarse tuffs that are most probably deposited during a very short time and that
can be correlated with the upper volcanic arc series known onshore from north
Borneo (Sabah), south Palawan, and Zamboanga Peninsula. They are again
overlain by 30 m of red clay of early middle Miocene age (Calocycletta costata
Zone). The red clay is replaced upsection by greenish gray clay with altered ashes.
This sequence is barren of nannofossils except the distinct turbidite layers in Core
124-768C-42R. They contain rare nannofossils typical for Zone NN5.
However, it is not clear if they are displaced and indicate the real age of
these sediments or if they are reworked. These turbidites contain also the first land-
derived material (quartz sand) that becomes common at late middle Miocene time
(Zone NN8) dated in Core 124-768C-40R. These turbidites are rich in well-rounded
quartz grains, plant fragments, and some reworked nannofossils from older strata
(Eocene, Oligocene to lower middle Miocene). The greenish gray clay continues
as background lithology. This means that at this time older deformed series had
been exposed to erosion. The terrigenous material originates most probably from
north Borneo, where thick Paleogene series (Crocker formation) have been
exposed after the early middle Miocene deformation. Layers of carbonate
turbidites are intercalated with the terrigenous sediments.
Number and thickness of these turbidites are increasing during latest

Miocene-early Pliocene time. They contain displaced marls from a shallow
environment. The early Pliocene layers are characterized by the high input of
sheital material as shown by the abundance of shallow-water benthic foraminifers
and tunicate spines. This might be related to tectonic movements as also

recognized onshore on the surrounding areas. The input of terrigenous material is

replaced by the occurrence of volcanic ashes during latest Miocene time to
Holocene. This change took place at the boundary between nannoplankton Zones
NNlla/NNllb at about 6.3 m.y. This lithologic change might indicate the function of
the SuluNegros Trench connected with the initiation of the SuluZamboanga-
Negros volcanic arc. A comparable lithologic sequence was encountered at Site
769 located on the flank of the Cagayan Ridge.
At Site 771, situated on a fault block of the southeast flank of the Cagayan
Ridge above the carbonate compensation depth (CCD), it was possible to date a
complete series from nannoplankton Zone NN3 of early Miocene age, included in
the volcanic rocks, to the Quaternary. The middle and late Miocene sediments of
this sequence are devoid of landderived material due to its high topographic
position. The cessation of the volcanic arc activity was recognized within
nannoplankton Zone NN5 of early middle Miocene age, in good agreement with
data from sections in north Borneo and Zamboanga Peninsula

Figure 28. Three sites drilled in the SE Sulu Sea Basin by ODP

Figure 29. Biostratigraphic and Lithologic Columns of the Three sites drilled in the SE Sulu Sea
Basin

According to the published book of Ocean Drilling Program by Hinz, K.,

Silver, E., & Breymann, M. v. (1988),
The seismic data reveal that the Sulu Sea's two sub-basins have quite
diverse seismic properties.
Northwest Sulu Sea Basin
Two major tectonic stratigraphic terranes are overlaid in the northwest Sulu
basin, which is characterized by a widespread free-air gravity low. The upper unit's
thickness ranges between 0.5 and 3.5 seconds in two directions (s twt). It is
distinguished by a consistent pattern of reflection. The top unit is separated from
the seismically non-coherent lower unit by an unique seismic unconformity
designated horizon fCf by Hinz et al. (1986). The bottom unit is around 2-3 s twt
thick.
Based on an analysis of 10 wells along the coasts of southwest Palawan

and Borneo, as well as four wells from the western Sulu Sea, horizon fCf appears
to mark the end of a major regional tectonic event that impacted the northwest Sulu
basin until the late early Miocene. The sediments above horizon fC are mostly from
biostratigraphic zones N9 and NN5, which are around 17 Ma old. The termination
of seafloor spreading in the South China Sea has been linked to Horizon 'C.
(magnetic anomaly 5D, 17 Ma; Taylor and Hayes, 1983). Hinz et al. (1986) believe
the seismically non-coherent bottom unit is made up of imbricated pre-middle
Miocene rocks that include Paleogene Crocker Formation and Cretaceous Chert-
Spilite Formation counterparts.

Southeast Sulu Sea Basin
The crustal thicknesses and seismic basement features of the deep

southeast Sulu basin are typical of oceanic crust; a 1-2 s twt (elapsed time to travel)
thick and seismically coherent sedimentary sequence overlies oceanic basement.
Hinz et al. interpreted the stratigraphy of the sedimentary succession by dividing it
into several unconformities marked SI to S6 (1988). At the Sulu Trench, the
oceanic crust of the southeast Sulu basin dips eastward. Above the southeast Sulu
basin's downgoing oceanic crust is an accretionary wedge.
The thickness of the wedge increases steadily from about 1 s twt at the Sulu
Trench to >4 s twt. In general, the toe of the wedge is characterized by thrust
sheets forming an imbricate system in front of an inferred oceanic crustal slab that
forms the 'backstop' against which the wedge accretes. The top of the downgoing
oceanic crust forms a major detachment plane.
The intricately laminated and differently colored sediments recovered by

piston coring in the Sulu Trench are regarded as turbidites (Kudrass, 1988).
Temperatures of +10°C have been recorded in the Sulu Trench's seafloor, with
substantial heat-flow values determined. Surface sediments from the accretionary
wedge's toe have revealed high methane concentrations (up to 17,700 ppb)
(Berner, 1988). These data show that fluids from the accretionary wedge are
flowing into the Sulu Trench along stratigraphic stages.

Figure 30. Bathymetric map of the Sulu Sea, showing the location of the proposed drill sites.
Contour interval of 500 m.
For SS-1 located at 08°49.5!N, 121°27.1 E having a water depth of 4615 m

and sediment thickness of 1250 m, APC/XCB and RCB (re-entry) core through
entire sedimentary section and 50 m into basement (total penetration - 1300 m)
was proposed as a drilling program. Logging of Standard Schlumberger logging

and borehole televiewer, expecting a turbidites and pelagic sediments with

volcanic ashes, overlying basaltic basement as nature of rocks or sediments.
For SS-2 located at 07°59.6’N, 121°14.1’E having a water depth of 4320 m

and sediment thickness of 1!50 m, APC/XCB and RCB (re-entry) core through
was proposed as a drilling program Logging of Standard Schlumberger logging
and borehole televiewer, expecting a turbidites and pelagic sediments with
volcanic ashes, overlying basaltic basement as nature of rocks or sediments.
For SS-3 located at 08°24.7'N, 121°10.6'E having a water depth of 4270 m

and sediment thickness od 1300 m, APC/XCB and RCB (re-entry) core through
was proposed as a drilling program. Logging of Standard Schlumberger logging
and borehole televiewer and possibly also Schlumberger vertical seismic profile
(VSP). Expecting a turbidites and pelagic sediments with volcanic ashes, overlying
basaltic basement as nature of rocks or sediments.
For SS-4 located at 08°04fN, 121°52.8'E having a water depth of 3885 m

and sediment thickness of 1!50 m. two options for drilling programs were proposed
in this site: (a) APC/XCB and RCB (re-entry) core through entire sedimentary
section and 50 m into basement (total penetration = 1200 m) and (b) Single-bit
spot coring, and 50 m into basement. Logging for option (a) Standard
Schlumberger logging and for option (b) strings Schlumberger suite. Expecting a
turbidites and pelagic sediments with volcanic ashes, overlying basaltic basement
as nature of rocks or sediments.

Sandakan Sub-Basin
Figure 31. Regional stratigraphy of Sabah (modified from DOE, 2001) incorporating the seismic
horizons and seismic units interpreted in the study area.

To connect seismic facies with lithofacies, correlation panels were produced

for wells that intersected each seismic facies. This correlation has placed the
inferred seismic intervals in the context of the research area's regional stratigraphy
(Figure 31). Throughout the examined time range, well data suggest that the basin
is dominated by fine-grained sediments (claystone) interbedded with various
clastics (sandstone, siltstone, shale). During the final stages of basin evolution,
carbonate development appears to be considerable. In the data set, there is a link
between seismic facies type, well log response, and lithofacies.
The paleogeographic reconstruction of the Sandakan Basin supports a

number of major arguments:
A. The research area's structural regime is similar to that of a deep-water fold-

thrust belt (DWFTB) system.
B. Active progradation occurred throughout the Late-Middle Miocene.
C. In the Pliocene-Pleistocene, carbonate deposition was the major
depositional process.
D. The sediment comes from mainland Borneo.
E. The delta system is mostly made up of mud.
The Sandakan Sub-seismic basin's facies mapping found that seismic

facies are related to lithofacies and depositional environments. The basin has
developed from an aggressively protruding fluvio-deltaic system, mostly fed by the
Kinabatangan River in Borneo, to a shelfal marine habitat, according to the data.
The mapping process allowed for the creation of the basin's paleogeography and
provided new insights on the basin's prospectivity. Furthermore, the structural
interpretation of seismic data reveals information about the time of deformation in
the Sandakan Sub-basin as well as the presence of structural traps.

IV. Seismic Facies
Other data were collected as it relates to the possible characteristics of the basin.
Futalan et. al. (2012) showed the seismic facies present in the sub basin of
the Sulu Sea, which is the Sandakan Sub-basin.
Figure 32. Seismic Facies Identified in Sandakan Sub-Basin

The six different seismic facies identified in the study area. Four seismic
reflection attributes were used to classify the facies types: external geometry,
internal configuration, amplitude and continuity. External geometry is observed
from a 3D view of the package (i.e. combination of dip and strike lines) and hence,
not exemplified in the figures above.
Seismic facies in the units across horizons were discovered once the major
horizons were established. In the study area, six seismic facies were identified
(Figure 32). Although patchy distributions are typical, the distribution of seismic
facies types (Figure normally trend parallel to the current shelf location (NWSE).
From the Middle Miocene (Units 1 to 3), through the Late Miocene (Units 4 to 7)
and into the Pliocene, there appears to be a change in the main seismic facies
type (Units 8 to 10).

Chapter IV
I. Resource Assessment
Techniques for estimating recoverable natural gas resources are heavily

reliant on geology, geophysical, as well as discovery and production data. The
economically recoverable portion of found natural gas resources is what reserves
are loosely defined as. Gas reserves are discovered and confirmed gas volumes
with a development plan that shows commercially viable production at current
costs.
In this section, the resource assessment done by the Department of Energy

in 2003 yielded the result shown below.
TOTAL OIL GAS TOTAL

RESOURCES CLASS Million Million Billion Million
Sm3 o.e. Sm3 Sm3 bbl o.e.
(Mean) (Mean) (Mean) (Mean)
Total Resources 32 21 11 203
Undiscovered resources 32 21 11 203
Hypothetical (Mapped) Resources 17 11 6 109
Prospects 14 8 6 89
Leads 3 3 0 20
Speculative (Unmapped) 15 10 5 94
Resources
Table 4. Resource assessment by Department of Energy (2003)
II. Estimated Resources
The Sulu Sea Basin has an estimated resource of 203 million barrels of oil.
Hypothetical or mapped resources show 109 million barrels of oil and gas that are
yet to be drilled. Speculative or unmapped resources amount to 94 million barrels,
despite having little to no evidence makes the basin a good choice for ventures.

The total amount of resources that are yet to be recovered can at least supply the
Philippines’ oil demand for a decade based on its daily consumption of 429000
barrels.
Figure 33. Sulu Sea Estimated Resources by DOE (2003)
Total Resources: 203 million Barrels
Oil: 36%, equivalent of 73,080,000 barrels
Gas: 64%, equivalent of 129,920,000 barrels

Chapter V
I. Summary
This case study is composed of five chapters. The researchers wanted to

analyze and study the potentiality of one out of 16 known sedimentary basins, the
Sulu Sea Basin, as one of the petroleum or oil and gas resources in the Philippines.
The Philippines has over 16 sedimentary basins and the focus of this paper
is the Sulu Sea Basin, which is located between the islands of Palawan, Panay,
Negros, and Western Mindanao. It is made up of many northeast-trending sub-
basins, including the Northwest and Southeast Sulu Basins, as well as three
smaller sub-basins on Sabah's northeast shelf, notably the Balabac, Bancauan,
and Sandakan. From its demographic data, islands around the Sulu Sea have a
population of 1,000,108 people, with a density of 620 people per square kilometer
or 1,600 people per square mile. Sulu's residents are mostly Muslim, accounting
for over 90% of the province's population in 2015. While for the mode of
transportation, there are two varying ways: plane flight, which is the fastest way,
and the other one is by taking highways, tolls, and ferries, which will be a long ride.
For the objectives of the study, the researchers aim to determine the areas covered
by the basin and age, the lithology present well drilled. To identify the source,
reservoir, and cap rock including age and formation name, it is also necessary to
be familiar with seismic interpretation, well descriptions, and summaries. The study
would be conducted through the utilization of the data and samples collected from
the findings of the previous onshore and offshore geological research studies.
Sulu Sea Basin has been one of the prospects of oil and gas companies in
the Philippines and other countries. Sulu Sea basin, approximately having 260,000
square kilometer surface area, is an oceanic basin enclosed by the islands of

Palawan, Sulu Archipelago and other continental islands of Borneo. Sulu Sea
Basin is covered by both Malaysia and Philippines because it reaches out the
northeast portion of Sabah which is a Malaysian territory up to Negros Trench of
the Philippines. mentioned by Tamesis (1990), this smaller sub-basin, which is the
Sandakan, collectively known as the Western Sulu Basin, have been the subject
of active oil and gas exploration over the past two decades. Tectonic
reconstruction models of geographical region all invoke within the early Cenozoic
the collision of Age of Reptiles oceanic plates, that are fragmented, consumed on
geologic process zones or emplaced onto the predominant plate. The collision of
the various plates within the early Cenozoic provided the most triggering
mechanism for the gap of contemporary marginal basins that surround the
Philippine arc and alternative regions in SE Asia. Similarly, after the marginal basin
gap area unit the fragmentation and ultimate emplacement or consumption on
geologic process zones of Age of Reptiles oceanic plates in SE Asia. In the 1990s,
Arco Philippines initiated rock oil exploration in the Sulu Ocean Basin, attempting
second and third-dimensional unstable knowledge and drilling four wells. The
Hippo-1 well (TD 3940 m) had mammary gland in 1998, while the Wildebeest-1
well (TD 3710 m) was mammary gland in 2000. Each well met only gas and very
little oil in the thin Miocene sandstones. One perissodactyl mammal – Arco
mammary gland – and one horse – well were dug in 2004 in quest of Miocene shelf
sands, but they were crowded and abandoned as dry holes. With the arrival of
faucet Oil, Mitra Energy, Ranhill Berhad, and hence ExxonMobil's stake, the drilling
results failed to decrease the basin's soil moisture.
This case study used the available materials and previous recorded
seismic, and previous well/exploration data to understand and elaborate the
possibility of Sulu Sea basin as oil and gas field. The schematic play types showed

the possible source rocks, reservoir rocks, and cap rocks present in the basin,
together with the possible leads and prospects for future exploration. Seismic
interpretations were also included, dividing the discussion of the basins according
to its previous seismic data, these includes the: Northwest Sulu Sea Basin,
Southeast Sulu Basin and the Sandakan Sub-basin. Figures were also shown for
a clear interpretation. The available seismic data were also used to further analyze
the well data, together with other well data recorded before. Other seismic related
data were also presented for it helps to define other characteristics of Sulu Sea
Basin that has not been explored or discovered yet.
There are several wells drilled in the Sulu Se Basin, most of the wells are
located are found in its Sub-Basin, the Sandakan Sub-Basin. Only few of the wells
showed the oil and gas presence, most of the exploration drilling wells found a dry
hole. However, 3 out of the wells drilled showed gas, oil, solely and gas and oil
presence. Area 7 was one of the exploration areas, in which wells are drilled to
examine the potentiality of oil and gas production. In this area, three out of six wells
have shown the gas presence, one is oil discovery, and the two wells were
considered as dry hole. In addition to this, SC 56 was also one of the drilled areas
that proves the presence of gas or condensate discoveries. Other wells drilled upto
2009 showed a significant feature that a good well must have, other wells like Sulu
Sea A-1 and Sulu Sea B-1 are in reality a little more than stratigraphic tests, a kick
was also recorded in A-1 well that is why it was terminated. Different companies
are interested in exploring the Sulu Sea Basin, especially the SC56, three wells
are drilled from this were analyzed and evaluated., this was reported to Jadestone
Energy Inc. The three wells that showed gas discoveries are the Babendil-1,
Dabakan-1, and Palendag-1. Data of Babendil-1 were not available, even so, data
from Dabakan-1 and Palendag-1 were presented to evaluate the potentiality of the

area for production. Dabakan-1 well encountered eight hydrocarbon reservoirs, all
within Miocene turbidites, and Palendag-1 well encountered 4 hydrocarbon
reservoirs, all within a slightly older Late Miocene sequence of the first said well.
Leg 124 of Ocean Drilling Program drilled three sites of southeast Sulu Sea
Basin. The age of the sites was not clearly defined, but turbidite were also found
here, Miocene and Paleocene time were also observed in the fossils found in the
three areas drilled. There were also drilled sites proposed for further analyzation
of the basin.
Resources assessments are often reported as a probability-based range of

low, best, and highest estimates for recoverable quantities of an element. The
resource assessment done in the Sulu Sea Basin by the Department of Energy in
2003 yielded a result of an estimated resource of 203 million barrels of oil.
Hypothetical or mapped resources show 109 million barrels while speculative or
unmapped resources amount to 94 million barrels of oil and gas. The result of the
mapping takes to a conclusion that the basin is great place for an oil exploration.
Based on its daily use of 429000 barrels, the entire number of resources yet to be
retrieved can at least meet the Philippines' oil requirement for a decade.
II. Conclusions
According to the gathered, collected and presented data on the previous

chapters, the researchers obtained to the following conclusions.
• Sulu Sea Basin is divided into two basins by the Cagayan Ridge and has
one sub-basin, located near at Sabah. The two basins are the Northwest
Sulu Sea Basin and the Southwest Sulu Sea Basin, the sub-basin of Sulu
Sea is known as Sandakan sub-basin. Sulu Sea Basin is formed during

Middle Miocene Period, approximately 16 million years to 11.6 million years

ago.
• From the wells drilled in the Sulu Sea Basin, considering all wells in all
areas, the following lithology were observed: the reefal limestone with
interbeds of claystone and sandstone, sandstones interbedded with
carbonaceous claystone and lignite, deltaic quartzone sequences with
volcaniclastics coal seams and quartzone sandstones with siltstone and
carbonaceous shales. Moreover, proposed drill sites of wells are expecting
to have turbidites and pelagic sediments with volcanic ashes overlying
basaltic basement as nature of rocks or sediments present underneath.
Most of the wells showed the same lithology but differ of what it offers
because of unconformities.
• The Sulu Sea Basin Petroleum system is defined by the possible presence
of source rocks, reservoir rocks, and cap rocks or seal rocks identified. The
source rock identified is the Early to Late Miocene sediments, the reservoir
rock identified is the Early to Middle Miocene quartzose sandstone, and seal
rock of interbedded claystones and siltstones overlying its reservoir rocks.
According to the generalized stratigraphy of the Sulu Sea Basin, following
formations were observed: the formation of crystalline basement near at
Tawi-Tawi, Chert Splite formation, Crocker Formation, the Ayer formation,
Libong Formation and Tongku Formation from the Segama Group and the
three formations were found at the dent group, the Sebahat formation,
Ganduman formation and Togopi Formation.
• Exploration History of the Sulu Sea Basin has opened many drilled well in
the area. Seismic Interpretation have shown the possible presence of oil
and gas in areas, that leads to well drilling for the purpose of exploration,
several reservoirs showed the hydrocarbon in place. There are

approximately 22 wells drilled in the Sulu Sea Basin, most wells are found
in the Sandakan Sub-Basin. Most of the holes shows a dry hole, however
there are few or some wells showed the presence of oil and/or gas. The
many wells were drilled and showed the presence of a condensate/gas, yet
the volume of the gas present is not profitable enough for production.
• The Sulu Sea Basin has an estimated resource of 203 million barrels of oil.
36% of the total million barrels are Oil with an equivalent of equivalent of
73,080,000 barrels and 64% of this are gas having an equivalent of
129,920,000 barrels.
There are still areas of Sulu Sea Basin that remains unexplored. Although
there are wells drilled in the Sulu Sea Basin for exploration, the future of its
production is still unclear because it holds minimal volume of hydrocarbon proven
by the exploration done in the area. Nevertheless, the data and information
provided is a good sign for a maturing field of oil and gas in the Philippines. More
exploration is suggested, especially in areas that were not yet explored, this basin
is still unexplored and there may be areas that holds abundant hydrocarbon waiting
to be found and discovered.

References
Abando, R. P., & Ansay, G. H. (September 2002). Sulu Sea – East Palawan Basins:
Frontier Basin Case Study. http://kalibo.tukcedo.nl/geol_suluseabasin.pdf
Abangan, E. S. (2003, March). The Sulu Sea/East Palawan Basins Resource
Assessment.
http://www.ccop.or.th/ppm/document/PHWS1/Sulu%20Sea%20Resource%2
0Assessment.pdf?fbclid=IwAR1zZ6mlaq2uLrvOW9mSEMqEjTKjg50JCNrFE
Ox3shHD9hLyCjcTYM93DkI
Bautista, J. M. (2020). Oil and Gas Exploration in The Philippines. Exploration History of
The Philippines, 17. https://www.geoexpro.com/articles/2020/07/oil-and-gas-
exploration-in-the-philippines
Bluelake Energy. (n.d.). Mitra Energy Valuation.
http://bluelakeenergy.co.uk/includes/downloader/MmVhOTU0ZmIxYWZhNT
A0NzQ1Njk4MTdkNGRiMTc3MjTcJmyrOXrRJqZdRah1m_OrNnBHSWo5b2
xiSUtBZGhXNEE2UjlDUlh1V05XWGlUZ1ozTkhJRVQxSnVDK3JaaUVaR3d
aRUZQYnJYSG4rOGJNTVFiRm8vdnhQWHpjZmZTbGt0RXNGclE9PQ
COORDINATING COMMITTEE FOR GEOSCIENCE PROGRAMMES IN EAST AND
SOUTHEAST ASIA (CCOP). (2008). February.
http://www.ccop.or.th/pdf/icb/ICB__Final_Report_Vol1_2.pdf?fbclid=IwAR1a
DmohWEDeJ-nxU8pGpYYl_8Qh_qnCSKt97dWyei42YzPlFvd2KEiOrN0
Futalan, k., Mitchell, A., Amos, K., & Backe, G. (2012). Seismic facies analysis and
structural interpretation of the Sandakan Sub-basin, Sulu Sea, Philippines.
Semantic Scholar. https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/Seismic-facies-
analysis-and-structural-of-the-Sulu-Futalan-Mitchell
GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. (2020, December 14). STRATIGRAPHY.
https://www.ngu.no/en/topic/stratigraphy
Hanania, J., Le, C., Meyer, R., Sheardown, A., Stenhouse, K., & Donev, J. (2019, January
4). Oil and gas reservoir. Energy Education. Retrieved September 25, 2021,
from https://energyeducation.ca/encyclopedia/Oil_and_gas_reservoir
HINZ, K.; BLOCK, M.; KUDRASS, H.R. AND MEYER, H. (1991). Structural elements of
the BuIu Sea, Philippines. Geoz. Jaarbuch, A127, 483-606.
Hinz, K., Silver, E., & Breymann, M. v. (1988). Ocean Drilling Program LEG 124 Scientific
Prospectus Southeast Asia Basins. Ocean Drilling Program, Texas A&M
University. http://www-odp.tamu.edu/publications/prosp/digital/124prosp.pdf
HINZ, K. (1983). Reflectfon seismic record across the Northwest SuluBasin. In Bally, A.
W. (ed.): Seismic expression of structural styles - a picture and work atlas, 3,
4.2.183, American Association of Petroleum Geologists.

Hutchison, C. S. (1992). The Southeast Sulu Sea, a Neogene marginal basin with
outcropping extensions in Sabah. Geol. Soc. Malaysia, Bulletin 32.
https://gsm.org.my/products/702001-101037-PDF.pdf
KUDRASS, H.R.; MULLER, P.; KREUZER, H. AND WEISS, W. (1990). Volcanic rocks
and Tertiary carbonates dredged from the Cagayan Ridge, and the southwest
Sulu Sea, Philippines. Proceedings Ocean Drilling ProgrammelnitialReports,
College Station, Texas, 124,93-100.
Mc Cabe, R., Kiwawa, E., Cole, J. T., Malisce, A. J., Baldauf, P. E., Yumul, J., & Almasco,
J. (1987, January 10). Paleomagnetic results from Luzon and the central
Philippines. Scopus Preview.
https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1029/JB092iB01p00555
Muller, C. (1991). BIOSTRATIGRAPHY AND GEOLOGICAL EVOLUTION OF THE SULU

SEA AND SURROUNDING AREA1 (Vol. 124). Ocean Drilling Program.
http://www-
odp.tamu.edu/publications/124_SR/VOLUME/CHAPTERS/sr124_09.pdf
Murauchi, S., Ludwig, W.J., Den, N., Hotta, H., Asanuma, T., Yoshii, T., Kubotera, A., &
Hagiwara, K. (1943). Structure of the Sulu Sea and the Celebes Sea (Vol. 78).
Journal of Geophysical Research. https://doi.org/10.1029/JB078i017p03437
National Research Council. (1997). The Dynamics of Sedimentary Basins. NATIONAL
ACADEMY PRESS. https://www.nap.edu/read/5470/chapter/3
Norwegian Petroleum. (2019, March 20). How is Petroleum formed? Norsk Petroleum.
Retrieved September 25, 2021, from
https://www.norskpetroleum.no/en/petroleum-resources/petroleum-formation/
Philippines Statistics Authority. (2020).
http://rssoarmm.psa.gov.ph/release/54903/special-release/sulu-total-
population-reached-824-731
THE PHILODRILL CORPORATION. (2019). Sandakan Basin, Sulu Sea — Revisited.
https://www.geolsocphil.org/geocon2019/papers/Valdellon.pdf
Rangin, C., & Le Pichon, x. (n.d.). Plate convergence measured by GPS across the
Sundaland/Philippine Sea Plate deformed boundary: The Philippines and
eastern Indonesia. Geophysical Journal International.
https://www.scopus.com/record/display.uri?eid=2-s2.0-
0033378359&origin=inward&txGid=ed5573d4f0350508b02e01408bafd65f
Rangin, C. (1989). The Sulu Sea, a back arc basin setting within a Neogene collision zone.
Tectonophysics, 161, 119-14l.
SILVER, E. ET AL. 1989a. Origin of marginal basins. Nature, 338, 380-38l.
SILVER, E.ET AL.1989b. Leg 124 researchers drill marginal basins. Geotimes, May, 15-
17.

SILVER, E. ET AL. 1989c. Leg 124: SE Asia basins site reports. JOIDES Journal, 15 (1),
12-17.
Sönnichsen, N. (2021, July 14). Global oil production share by country 2020. statista.
Retrieved October 1, 2021, from
https://www.statista.com/statistics/236605/share-of-global-crude-oil-
production-of-the-top-15-oil-producing-countries/
Symms, A., Cuthbertson, M., Hattingh, S., Jenner, R., Bani Hassan, N., Ramsay, J.,
McArthur, R., Preston, J., Becis, A., Ho, J., & Ozarbayeva, Z. (2018).
Evaluation of Hydrocarbon Reserves and Contingent Resources of Jadestone
Energy Inc’s Assets. Independent Energy Experts. https://www.jadestone-
energy.com/wp-
content/uploads/2018/07/P3645_Jadestone_AIM_YE2017_CPR_FINAL_Clie
ntRelease_15072018-No-Letter.pdf
Tamesis, E. V. (1990). Petroleum Geology of the Sulu Sea Basin, Philippines (Vol. IX).
Publication Proceedings of the South East Asia Petroleum Exploration
Society. https://archives.datapages.com/data/southeast-asia-petroleum-
exploration-society/data/014/014001/45_seapex0140045.htm
Tamesis, E. V. (1990). Petroleum Geology of the Sulu Sea Basin, Philippines. The
AAPG/Datapages Combined Publications Database.
https://archives.datapages.com/data/southeast-asia-petroleum-exploration-
society/data/014/014001/45_seapex0140045.htm
Worldometer. (n.d.). Philippines Oil. Worldometer. Retrieved October 4, 2021, from
https://www.worldometers.info/oil/philippines-oil/
Yumul Jr., G. P., Dimalanta, C. B., TAmayo Jr., R. A., & Maury, R. C. (2003, May 22).
Collision, subduction and accretion events in the Philippines: new
interpretations and implications. Wiley Online Library.
https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1046/j.1440-1738.2003.00382

Group 07 3102 - Sulu Sea Basin - Pete 407 1

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Title

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Group 07 3102 - Sulu Sea Basin - Pete 407 1

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

A Case Study Presented to

Engr. Arnel M. Molina – Course Instructor/ Faculty Member

SULU SEA BASIN

Depositional sedimentary environments are located everywhere and can be

SULU SEA BASIN: A CASE STUDY │PAGE 1

Countries from different corners of the world are contributing to the

SULU SEA BASIN: A CASE STUDY │PAGE 2

The Philippines is known for its abundant natural resources, be it in geology

SULU SEA BASIN: A CASE STUDY │PAGE 3

The Philippines is a tropical country that is made up of thousands of islands,

SULU SEA BASIN: A CASE STUDY │PAGE 4

Figure 1. The Philippines Map and Sulu Sea Basin

SULU SEA BASIN: A CASE STUDY │PAGE 5

SULU SEA BASIN: A CASE STUDY │PAGE 6

The province covers 4,547.16 square kilometers (1755.67 square miles) of

The Tausugs, although being a mixed Muslim community, dominate the

SULU SEA BASIN: A CASE STUDY │PAGE 7

Sinama Sibutu (spoken mostly in the Sibutu-Sitangkai Region), Sinama Simunul

The Bajau-Sama language is also spoken, as are Tagalog (Filipino) and

SULU SEA BASIN: A CASE STUDY │PAGE 8

IV. Mode of Transportation

Figure 3. Metro Manila to Zamboanga Port

SULU SEA BASIN: A CASE STUDY │PAGE 9

Figure 4. Zamboanga Port to Sulu Sea

SULU SEA BASIN: A CASE STUDY │PAGE 10

VI. Scope and Limitations of the Study

SULU SEA BASIN: A CASE STUDY │PAGE 11

SULU SEA BASIN: A CASE STUDY │PAGE 12

II. Tectonic Settings of SE Asia

Southeast Asia tectonics involved long-term convergence of various plates,

Consequent to Cenozoic basinal opening and attendant plate subduction

Tectonic reconstruction models of Southeast Asia all invoke in the early

SULU SEA BASIN: A CASE STUDY │PAGE 13

SULU SEA BASIN: A CASE STUDY │PAGE 14

SULU SEA BASIN: A CASE STUDY │PAGE 15

III. Tectonic History of the Basin

SULU SEA BASIN: A CASE STUDY │PAGE 16

Stratigraphy is the classification of different layers or layering of

SULU SEA BASIN: A CASE STUDY │PAGE 17

Figure 6. Generalized Stratigraphy of the Sulu Sea Basin

SULU SEA BASIN: A CASE STUDY │PAGE 18

• Crystalline Basement is found in the northeast and central Tawi-Tawi

SULU SEA BASIN: A CASE STUDY │PAGE 19

V. Structural Elements of the Basin

VI. Exploration History

SULU SEA BASIN: A CASE STUDY │PAGE 20

SULU SEA BASIN: A CASE STUDY │PAGE 21

Data and Methods

I. Schematic Play Concept Types for Petroleum System in the Basin

Potential source rocks in the basins consist of Early to Late Miocene

SULU SEA BASIN: A CASE STUDY │PAGE 22

Early to Middle Miocene quartzose sandstone section penetrated by

Late Miocene rocks encountered in Sandakan sub-basin showed

Potential seals are mostly interbedded claystones and siltstones

SULU SEA BASIN: A CASE STUDY │PAGE 23

Petroleum Play types

Prospect and Leads

The PhilPRA Project compiled 21 structures in the Sulu Sea basin

SULU SEA BASIN: A CASE STUDY │PAGE 24

II. Seismic Interpretation

SULU SEA BASIN: A CASE STUDY │PAGE 25

SULU SEA BASIN: A CASE STUDY │PAGE 26

SULU SEA BASIN: A CASE STUDY │PAGE 27