The hydrocarbon potential and tectonics of Indochina

702001-101379-1189-B
Author : Hayashi, M.
Publication : Bulletin of the Geological Society of Malaysia
Page : 65 – 78
Volume Number : 25
Year : 1989
DOI : https://doi.org/10.7186/bgsm25198905

Bulletin of the Geological Society of Malaysia, Volume 25, Dec.1989, pp. 65 – 78

The Hydrocarbon Potential and Tectonics of Indochina

MASAO HAYASHI

Idemitsu Oil Development Co., Ltd., Singapore

 

Abstract: Indochina covers a wide area between the South China Sea and the Bay of Bengal. The eastern half of the region is selected for tectonic analysis study and hydrocarbon potential investigation. The Kontum Massif, composed of a metamorphosed basement complex, seems to be the core of the Indochina region, and crops out from eastern Vietnam to Laos and Kampuchea. The concept of concentric growth of orogenic belts along the periphery of this massif seems to have been accepted as being within the scope of the classic theory of orogeny. The application of a modern plate tectonic hypothesis with the aid of LANDSAT image analysis, has however enabled a new interpretation of the tectonic development of the area to be made.

The hydrocarbon potential of Indochina is here investigated, based on this interpretation of the regions tectonic development, taking into account the morphological and textural characteristics detected from the LANDSAT imagery and integration with fundamental geological factors. Three areas, (1) the Mekong Delta, (2) the Khorat Plateau, and (3) the Hanoi Basin, are selected for detailed discussion on their hydrocarbon potential.

 https://doi.org/10.7186/bgsm25198905