Regional geology and petroleum systems of the Illizi–Berkine area of the Algerian Saharan Platform: An overview

The Berkine and Illizi basins are Palaeozoic–Mesozoic intraplate depressions that preserve an over 7000 m thick sedimentary rock record and contain world-class petroleum systems with over 39 BBOE EUR hydrocarbon reserves. Regional seismic transects and a wealth of well data are used to review the tectonostratigraphic evolution of the area. The Gondwana (Palaeozoic) and Tethys (Mesozoic) supercycles make up the bulk of the Phanerozoic succession. These 1st order cycles record extensional basin formation, followed by a protracted period of overall net subsidence, and conclude with basin inversion and regional uplift during the Hercynian and Alpine orogenies respectively. Structural styles were dictated by transpressional or transtensional reactivation of mostly NNE oriented basement structural grain of Late Proterozoic–Ea.Cambrian (Pan-African) age and vertical movement of long wavelength regional highs and lows. Local tectonism is considered to be the far-field effect of plate-tectonic processes that affected the North African plate-boundaries, such as the Caledonian and Hercynian Orogenies, the opening of the Tethys and Atlantic oceans, and the Alpine Orogeny. These were accompanied by localised thermal mantle processes.