Stephen

Stephen C.
C. Ruppel,
Ruppel,
SUBREGIONAL DEVELOPMENT OF RESERVOIR POROSITY AT A MAJOR PERMIAN UNCONFORMITY:
The
Bureau
Bureau of
The University
of Economic
University of
Economic Geology,
of Texas,
Geology,
Texas, Austin,
Austin, TX,
TX, 78713-8924
78713-8924
SAN ANDRES FORMATION, WEST TEXAS
ABSTRACT
ABSTRACT
Most porosity development in carbonate reservoirs can be attributed in part or
in total to diagenesis. This is especially true in Permian reservoirs of the Permian
Basin, nearly all of which are dolomitized. Linking this diagenesis and
associated porosity to unconformities representing major falls in sea level, INTRODUCTION STRATIGRAPHY AND FACIES
however, is commonly problematic using typical reservoir data sets. New
subsurface data from the San Andres Formation, a major oil-producing reservoir
in Texas and New Mexico, coupled with relationships previously defined from SAN ANDRES-GRAYBURG STRATIGRAPHY AND FACIES CYCLE STRATIGRAPHY AND FACIES ARCHITECTURE
equivalent outcrops, illustrate both the style and expression of such porosity SAN
SAN ANDRES
ANDRES STRUCTURE
STRUCTURE
FUHRMAN-MASCHO
FUHRMAN-MASCHO FIELD
FIELD Fuhrman-Mascho Field Fuhrman-Mascho San Andres Field, Andrews County, Texas
development. 0 MIDDLE
MIDDLE PERMIAN
PERMIAN SEQUENCE
SEQUENCE STRATIGRAPHY
STRATIGRAPHY Northwest Southeast

Permeability
10 A-43
-1 PSL

saturation
A-47 Permian
Permian Basin
Basin Gamma ray (API) Neutron porosity (%)
PSL

Oil
Although the San Andres is characterized by an upward-shallowing succession Depth
(ft) WFMU 110 WFMU 109 FMU 12A FMU 211 FMU 607 FMU 605 FMU 705 FMU 806
Western Central Western 0 100 30 20 10 0 -10 WFMU 124 GR N GR N GR N GR N GR N GR N
of outer- to inner-ramp carbonate lithofacies in most platform settings, pervious High Relative 10

Series
Algerita Western GR N GR N ft
A-42 freq. sea level Delaware Basin Midland GDP
SGR N ft ft ft ft
PSL Escarpment Escarpment S W P G
ft ft

4250
studies have demonstrated that the section is broken by a major unconformity SGR ft

Grayburg Fm.
Basin Platform Basin

4200
seq. Fall ft

4250
4250

4250
that represents a sea-level fall of at least 100 m and a hiatus of 0.5 to 1 my.

4150
4150
G16 Queen Queen Queen D D

4200
D
0
20 G15

4300
-1 Grayburg Grayburg Cherry Grayburg Grayburg
FUHRMAN-MASCHO FIELD G14 Canyon A
Both the evidence and the result of this sea-level fall event are clearly expressed G13 upper Cherry Canyon upper upper A

Grayburg
GUADALUPIAN
G12 San Andres San Andres San Andres CGR
in the San Andres reservoir at Fuhrman-Mascho field. Although cryptic in some

composite sequence
upper San Andres
G11 Z Z
CGR 4300
core sections, the hiatus is indicated by an abrupt shift from outer ramp G10

Upward-shallowing cycles
4300'

G9
Brushy 1
deposits, composed of open marine fusulinid wackestones and packstones, to Brushy

Upper San Andres Fm.

G8 Canyon

Guadalupian HFS 12-13

Canyon
exposed tidal flat deposits. Porosity is developed in solution-enhanced vertical G7

0
equivalent

-1100
-120
G6 2
burrows below the unconformity. Although highly heterogeneous, the porosity G5
G4

lower San Andres

in this burrowed zone reaches 15 m in thickness and extends for many DS

San Andres
comp. sequence
LAN
ITY G3
ERS 9
UNIV BLOCK

lower
Cutoff Cutoff McKnight
kilometers. The widespread porosity development at this unconformity is a ND S -1300 G2 lower lower 3

LEONARDIAN
Y LA
I V E RSIT 10 G1 San Andres San Andres
UN BLOCK
potential new target for both field exploitation and regional exploration L8 upper
-1200
Victorio Pk Holt
operations. L7
L6
Bone
Spring Glorieta Glorieta
lower
Yeso

-11
-11 Victorio Pk Clear Fork Clear Fork

00
00
Structural high
STUDY QAb3743c

Lower San Andres Fm.

(>-1150') Hiatus

4600
AREA

-1

Guadalupian HFS 1-4

00

4600
0

4592
4400'

0 10,000 ft 3. Comprehensive study of the San Andres and Grayburg Formations in outcrop in the Guadalupe
EMMA FIELD
Mountains by Kerans and co-workers shows that the San Andres platform carbonate succession is
0 300 m

4700
divided by a major uniformity representing at least 100 m of sea-level fall.
QAc1874c C.I. 50 ft

4650
upper San Andres
1700 ft

4700
2. Structurally, the field exhibits a local relief of about

4700
350 ft. Mapping of the McKnight shale, below, shows 1300 ft

4700
Dickens 3000 ft 2600 ft

4700
Cochran Hockley Lubbock Crosby that the early San Andres paleotopography bears no
Study relationship to current structure. 2700 ft
area NORTHERN SHELF
NEW Depth
MEXICO
Slaughter 1700 ft 1900 ft 1800 ft ft m
0 0
TEXAS
Yoakum Terry Lynn Garza Kent
MEXICO
Inner ramp–tidal flat Ramp crest grain–
Core Peritidal tidal flat
North South mud-dominated facies dominated packstone–grainstone
Gaines LOWER
LOWER SAN
SAN ANDRES
ANDRES PALEOTOPOGRAPHY
PALEOTOPOGRAPHY
Vacuum LSA high porosity/
FUHRMAN-MASCHO
FUHRMAN-MASCHO FIELD
FIELD Western Delaware Middle ramp peloidal– Outer ramp fusulinid
Hanford Dawson Borden Scurry Fisher Algerita Escarpment Brokeoff Mts 4500'
permeability Siltstone–sandstone 30
Guad. 13 Escarpment Mts skeletal wackestone–packstone wackestone–packstone 100 QAc1877c
West upper Guad. 12
EASTERN A-43
Seminole Seminole PSL San Andres
A-47
MID

North PSL Guad. 4

Robertson Gaines 6. Cross sections through the field demonstrate (1) long correlation lengths of Grayburg cycle-base siltstones, (2) poor continuity and predictability of upper San Andres cycles and
Depth
LAN

0 20 40 mi Means Martin Howard Nolan Guad. 3 Guad. 4 component facies, and (3) major facies offset marking the unconformity at the upper San Andres–lower San Andres boundary. Outer ramp fusulinid wackestones at the top of the
Mitchell ft m
Andrews A-42 LSA are sharply overlain by pisolitic, tidal-flat facies of the USA suggesting partial erosional truncation of the LSA.
PSL Guad. 1
D

0 20 40 60 km Martin lower Guad. 2 50 15

Fuhrman-Mascho
San Andres Leon. 8
CENTRA

Mabee SHELF
Emma Leon. 7
NEW MEX Lea FUHRMAN-MASCHO FIELD
Ector Glasscock Sterlng Coke
Goldsmith
TEXAS
BA
L BAS

Foster
S

Harper
IN

ft m
Loving Winkler LITHOSTRATIGRAPHIC
Reeves Penwell Midland
NOMENCLATURE 1000 300
IN

0 0

lower San Andres

Ward Upton Reagan Tom Green
Waddell Shallow Water San Andres Formation Gu
ad.
Dune STUDY platform carbonates 13 4600
Irion Inner Ramp
PL

McElroy AREA Upper Victoria Peak Formation

AT
DE

platform carbonates
F
LA

Pecos
OR

Lower Cherry Canyon Formation Guad. 5

5. The reservoir section at Fuhrman-Mascho comprises an overall upward-
WA

Cutoff Formation shallowing succession of lower San Andres, upper San Andres, and Grayburg

Guad. 5-11
DS
LAN
R

Crockett NDS ITY deep ramp mudstones 5 10 mi deposits.

Schleicher Y LA ERS 9
E

RSIT 10 UNIV BLOCK

OZONA I V E K Brushy Canyon Formation 0
UN BLOC
-22 0 10 km Grayburg Formation deposits are composed of restricted inner platform cycles
BA

N ARCH 00 Guad. 1- High-frequency sequence After Kerans and Ruppel (1994) made up of siltstone-rich bases and tidal-flat caps.
S

Unconformity
IN

Sutton
Terrell -21
Upper San Andres (USA) rocks comprise a complex cyclic succession of inner
00 Top of
-2000
McKnight
platform, shallow water subtidal carbonates (dominantly mud-dominated
-2
00 packstones), and cycle capping exposure tidal-flat facies.
0 Cored well QAa1719c

San Andres/Grayburg Peloidal grain- Lower San Andres (LSA) rocks are dominantly outer ramp fusulinid
Siltstone–sandstone Gypsum
fields ≥ 10 MMbbl production 4. Lower San Andres carbonates comprise six Leonardian and Guadalupian high-frequency sequences (L7-L8, G1-G4), dominated packstone
QA12908(a)c
Deeper Water whereas the upper San Andres contains two high-frequency sequences (G12 and G13). During the long mid-San Mudstone
wackestones with local capping peloid/ooid grain-dominated packstones and
0 10,000 ft Tidal flat Cycle set
Outer Ramp EMMA FIELD grainstones.
Andres lowstand platform hiatus, deposition was limited to lowstand sandstones of high-frequency sequences G5 Peloidal wackestone– High-frequency
Fusulinid packstone
0 300 m - G11 (Brushy Canyon Formation). packstone cycle boundary QAc1876c
1. The Fuhrman-Mascho field is located on the Central Basin Platform, an early Permian constructional QAc1875c C.I. 100 ft
platform. During San Andres deposition, the field area lay on a generally eastward-dipping carbonate ramp.

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QAc?? c