Depositional evolution and structural synthesis of the B marker (limestone) member, Whiterose Formation, Jeanne d'Arc, offshore Newfoundland

The discrepancy in the correlation of lithostratigraphy and seismic stratigraphy of the B Marker (limestone) Member on the eastern flank of the Hibernia oilfield is studied using available 3d seismic profiles and the log data from 16 wells across the Jeanne d'Arc Basin. Unlike the previous studies which suggested that the B Marker was deposited as a time synchronous lithology across basin, detailed seismic stratigraphic and well analysis revealed that the marker was in fact deposited as a mildly diachronous unit. Four seismic traces (S1-S4) are recognized within the stratigraphic range of the proposed B Marker seismic event. A Carbonate Ramp Facies Model is proposed, incorporating these traces, for the basin-wide sedimentation of the B Marker which explains in a precise manner, the notable lithological variations of the marker in various exploration wells across the Jeanne d'Arc Basin. The B Marker was deposited during a relative rise of base level within the basin, coincident with a rise of global sea level during the Valanginian. This deposition is summarized by four discrete events (S1-S4). (Abstract shortened by UMI.)...