Application of the Wide Field Electromagnetic Method for Oil and Gas Exploration in a Red-bed Basin of South China

Abstract

Red-bed basins with rich hydrocarbon source rocks are widely distributed in south China, such as Banshi Basin in southern Jiangxi, which may have very good prospects for oil and gas exploration. However, due to poor ground conditions, and complex geological structures, seismic exploration and conventional electromagnetic methods cannot provide useful information for hydrocarbon evaluation. This study uses the wide field electromagnetic (WFEM) method to investigate the distribution and geoelectric characteristics of the target stratum of a red-bed basin in Jiangxi province, China. The inversion results demonstrate that the WFEM method could quickly delineate the favorable area and determine the location of the parametric well, confirming that the WFEM method is an effective geophysical exploration method for evaluating hydrocarbon resources in red-bed basins.