Oil and gas prospecting beneath Precambrian of foreland thrust plates in Rocky Mountains
Only 16 wells in the Rocky Mountain region have drilled through Precambrian rocks to test the 3 to 6 million acres of sedimentary rocks that are concealed and virtually unexplored beneath mountain-front thrusts. One recent test is a major gas discovery, another a development oil well, and over half of the unsuccessful tests had oil or gas shows. These wells have not only set up an exciting play, they have also helped define the structural geometry of the mountain-front thrusts including the angle of the thrust, the amount of horizontal displacement, and the presence or absence of fault silvers containing overturned Mesozoic or Paleozoic rocks. Important for further geophysical exploration, these wells have provided vital data on seismic velocities in Precambrian rocks. Analysis of these data has stimulated further exploration along the fronts already drilled in Wyoming, the Emigrant Trail thrust, the Washakie thrust, the Wind River thrust, the thrust at the north end of the Laramie Range, and the Casper arch; in Utah and Colorado, the Uncompahgre and Uinta uplifts. The geologic success of these wells has encouraged leasing and seismic acquisition on every other mountain-front thrust in the Rockies. An unsuccessful attempt to drill through the Arlington thrust of the Medicine Bow Range will probably only momentarily daunt that play, and the attempted penetration of the Axial arch in Colorado has not condemned that area; in fact, another well is being drilled at this time. Untested areas that will be explored in the near future are: in Wyoming, the south flank of the Owl Creek Range, the southwest flank of the Gros Ventre Range, the east and west flanks of the Big Horn Mountains, the west flank of the Big Horn basin, the north flank of the Hanna basin; in Utah, the south flank of the Uinta Mountains; and in Colorado, the White River uplift, the north flank of North Park basin, and the Front Range.
- Research Organization:
- Amarex Inc., Denver, CO
- OSTI ID:
- 6987862
- Journal Information:
- Am. Assoc. Pet. Geol., Bull.; (United States), Journal Name: Am. Assoc. Pet. Geol., Bull.; (United States) Vol. 67:1; ISSN AAPGB
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
Similar Records
Oil and gas prospecting beneath the Precambrian of foreland thrust plates in the Rocky Mountains
Petroleum occurrences associated with Uinta mountains, Utah and Colorado
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020200* -- Petroleum-- Reserves
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030200 -- Natural Gas-- Reserves
Geology
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EXPLORATION
FEDERAL REGION VIII
GEOLOGIC AGES
GEOLOGIC DEPOSITS
GEOLOGIC FAULTS
GEOLOGIC STRUCTURES
GEOLOGY
GEOPHYSICAL SURVEYS
MESOZOIC ERA
MINERAL RESOURCES
MOUNTAINS
NATURAL GAS DEPOSITS
NORTH AMERICA
PALEOZOIC ERA
PETROLEUM DEPOSITS
PETROLEUM GEOLOGY
RESERVOIR ROCK
RESOURCES
ROCKS
ROCKY MOUNTAINS
SEDIMENTARY ROCKS
SEISMIC SURVEYS
SURVEYS
USA