Vlaming Sub-basin
Entity ID: 22022 Compiled by: Bradshaw, B.E. Year: 2003 Status: Defined
Last Revised: 2013
Rank: subprovince Type: sedimentary Subtype: polyhistory Location: WA On-shore and off-shore
Synonyms: NA Symbol: NA
Minimum age: Cenozoic Age method: inferred, biostratigraphic correlation
Maximum age: Cisuralian Age method: inferred
Summary: The ?Permian to Cenozoic Vlaming Sub-basin of the Perth Basin is a mainly offshore rift basin containing 15 km of siliciclastic fluvial-deltaic and marine rocks.
Attributes:
Area (square kilometres): 23000 State: WA Minimum present water depth (m): 0 Maximum present water depth (m): 3000 Main rock types: carbonate sediments and sedimentary rocks Main rock types: siliciclastic sediments and sedimentary rocks Main depositional environment: marine and non-marine Maximum sediment thickness (m): 15000 Present crustal setting: continental Country: AUS
Parent: Perth Basin
Child Provinces: No data
Relationships:
Adjoins - Abrolhos Sub-basin, Turtle Dove Ridge, Vasse Shelf, Yallingup Shelf, Zeewyck Sub-basin
Constituent units: Bunbury Basalt, Coolyena Group, Gage Sandstone, Leederville Formation, Otorowiri Member, Otorowiri Siltstone (Now known as Otorowiri Formation), South Perth Shale, Warnbro Group, Yarragadee Formation, Carnac Member, Straggler Member, Charlotte Sandstone, Mangles Member, Hawley Member, Jervoise Sandstone, Parmelia Group (Now known as Parmelia Group), Carnac Formation (Now known as Carnac Formation), Otorowiri Formation, Stragglers Member
Events: Australia-Greater India Breakup
Mineral Deposits: No data
Key Reference: Crostella, A., Backhouse, J. 2000, Geology and petroleum exploration of the central and southern Perth Basin, Western Australia, Geological Survey of Western Australia. Report, 57, 85 (Refid:12758)
Comments: No data
Overview: The Vlaming Sub-basin forms part of the Perth Basin on the southwestern margin of the Australian continent. Located mainly offshore, the sub-basin is relatively under-explored, with sixteen offshore wells and one onshore well drilled. One oil accumulation and one gas accumulation have been discovered (Gage Roads-1 and Marri-1 respectively, both sub-economic), while an oil show at Araucaria-1 and an oil and gas show at Gage Roads-2 have also been noted. The Vlaming Sub-basin is a deep (approximately 15 km), elongate, north-south trending trough that forms part of a complex polyphase Early Permian to Early Cretaceous rift system. The main depocentre in the Vlaming Sub-basin contains a very thick (up to 8000 m) Middle Jurassic to Lower Cretaceous syn-rift succession, which is overlain by a thick (up to 2000 m) Lower Cretaceous to Cenozoic, post-break-up succession. No wells have penetrated below Middle Jurassic strata from the Yarragadee Formation. However, up to 5000 m of older Permian to Lower Jurassic strata are probably also present. Also included in the mapped extents of the Vlaming Sub-basin is an extensive area (7900 sq. km) of shallow basement referred to as the Edward's Island Block. While a history of growth faulting is evident throughout the syn-rift section, most structures are associated with the break-up of Australia and Greater India during the Valanginian. Faulting prior to and during break-up produced a half-graben style of basin architecture, with associated strike-slip faults, anticlinal rollovers, collapse systems, and a prominent break-up unconformity with up to 1200m of relief. Most exploration has focussed on structural highs and tilted fault blocks located updip of the main source kitchen, the Bathurst Syncline. Oil source correlations suggest that the Middle to Upper Jurassic Yarragadee Formation is the main source rock interval. Successful exploration in the Vlaming Sub-basin requires predicting the extent, thickness and quality of seals, particularly Lower Cretaceous marine shales from the post-break-up section.
Images: Perth Basin regional setting and cross-section location map (101 KB), Perth Basin regional cross-section Profile 3 (56 KB), Perth Basin regional cross-section Profile 5 (63 KB), Perth Basin regional cross-section Profile 6 (58 KB), Southern Perth Basin stratigraphy (78 KB)
Other media: No data
Source Information:
- FOR PROVINCE-GENERAL: Cowley, R., 2001, MkII Airborne Laser Fluorosensor survey reprocessing and interpretation report: Perth Basin, Western Australia, Australian Geological Survey Organisation. Record, 2001/19, 32. (Refid: 12756)
- FOR PROVINCE-GENERAL: Bradshaw, B.E., Rollet, N., Totterdell, J.M., Borissova, I., 2003, A revised structural framework for frontier basins on the southern and southwestern Australian continental margin., Geoscience Australia. Record, 2003/03, 44. (Refid: 13490)
- FOR PROVINCE-GENERAL: Kantsler, A.J., Cook, A.C., 1979, Maturation Pathways in the Perth Basin, APEA Journal, 19, 94-107. (Refid: 12762)
- FOR PROVINCE-GENERAL: Kempton, R.H., Liu, K., Boreham, C., Bradshaw, B.E., Eadington, P.J., Passmore, V., 2002, Oil migration and accumulation in the offshore Perth Basin, Western Australia, CSIRO Confidential Report 02-005 to Geoscience Australia, 02-005, 71. (Refid: 12763)
- FOR PROVINCE-GENERAL: Song, T., Cawood, P.A., 2000, Structural styles in the Perth Basin associated with the Mesozoic breakup of Greater India and Australia, Tectonophysics, 317, 55-72. (Refid: 12771)
- FOR PROVINCE-GENERAL: Summons, R.E., Boreham, C.J., Foster, C.B., Murray, A.P., Gorter, J.D., 1995, Chemostratigraphy and the composition of oils in the Perth Basin, Western Australia, APEA Journal, 35(1), 613-632. (Refid: 12774)
- FOR PROVINCE-GENERAL: Marshall, J.F., Ramsay, D.C., Moore, A.M.G., Shafik, S., Graham, T.G., Needham, J., 1993, The Vlaming Sub-basin, offshore South Perth Basin., AGSO, Continental Margins Folio 7, Folio 7, 85. (Refid: 13373)
- FOR PROVINCE-GENERAL: Miyazaki, S., Cadman, S.J., Vuckovic, V., Davey, S.J., Conolly, J.R., 1996, Vlaming Sub-basin Petroleum Prospectivity Bulletin and Database., Bureau of Resource Sciences, Petroleum Prospectivity Bulletin, Canberra, 1996/1, . (Refid: 13374)
- FOR PROVINCE-GENERAL: Spring, D.E., Newell, N.A., 1993, Depositional Systems and Sequence Stratigraphy of the Cretaceous Warnbro Group, Vlaming sub-basin, Western Australia, APEA Journal, 33(2), 190-204. (Refid: 13377)
- FOR PROVINCE-GENERAL: Jones, D.K., Pearson, G.R., 1972, The tectonic elements of the Perth Basin., APEA Journal, 12(1), p17-22. (Refid: 31568)
- FOR PROVINCE-GENERAL: Cadman, S.J., Pain, L., Vuckovic, V., 1994, Perth Basin, Western Australia., Australian Petroleum Accumulations. Report, 10, 103pp. (Refid: 43031)
- FOR PROVINCE-GENERAL: Iasky, R.P., 1993, A structural study of the southern Perth basin, Western Australia., Geological Survey of Western Australia. Report, 31, 56pp. (Refid: 43096)
- FOR PROVINCE-GENERAL: Hocking, R.M., 1994, Subdivisions of Western Australian Neoproterozoic and Phanerozoic sedimentary basins., Geological Survey of Western Australia. Record, 1994/4, p1-84. (Refid: 43442)
- FOR PROVINCE-GENERAL: Myers, J.S., Hocking, R.M., 1998, Geological map of Western Australia 1:2 500 000. 13th Edition., Geological Survey of Western Australia, Map, Map Legend. (Refid: 44867)
- FOR PROVINCE-GENERAL: Marshall, J.F., Ramsay, D.C., Lavering, I., Swift, M.G., Shafik, S., Graham, T.G., West, B.G., Boreham, C.J., Summons, R.E., Apthorpe, M., Evans, P.R., 1989, Hydrocarbon prospectivity of the offshore South Perth Basin., Bureau of Mineral Resources, Record, 89/ 23, . (Refid: 49632)
- FOR PROVINCE-GENERAL: Seggie, R., 1990, Palaeogeography No 21. Geological cross-section of the Vlaming Sub-Basin, South Perth Basin., Bureau of Mineral Resources, Record, 90/ 64, . (Refid: 49715)
- FOR PROVINCE-GENERAL: Norvick, M.S., 2004, Tectonic and stratigraphic history of the Perth Basin, Geoscience Australia. Record, 2004/16, 18p + unnumb. pages of figures,chart. (Refid: 14227)
- FOR PROVINCE-GENERAL: Crostella, A., Backhouse, J., 2000, Geology and petroleum exploration of the central and southern Perth Basin, Western Australia, Geological Survey of Western Australia. Report, 57, 85. (Refid: 12758)
