XV.

1 Introduction
The Akimegah Basin is situated north of basement high (the Merauke Ridge) which separates it
from the Arafura Basin to the south. The area comprises theArafura Platform to the west and
foreland belt complex to the north, which comprises flat-laying Middle Jurassic to Cenozoic
sediments on a block faulted basement of Palaeozoic to Triassic sediments.
XV.2 Regional Geology XV.2.1 Structural Setting The southern flank of the Central Range consists
of folded and faulted sediments platform. From south to north: Arafura Platform, Foreland and
Tarera-Aiduna Fault Zone. TheArafura platform is unaffected by the Tertiary tectonic events, and
consisting of folded Middle Mesozoic to Cenozoic sediments, which lying on a block faulted
basement of Paleozoic to Early Mesozoic sediments. Its subsurface structure on the Arafura
Platform is the Uta Anticline (Vinke, 1958), which asymmetric southeast facing anticline bounded
bythruston the eitherflank.
The foreland fold belt is an east-west trending zone, which wide of 40 km. On this foreland fold belt
found over 30 fold structures, which showed that folding resulted from several incompetent levels,
such as, shale beds of the Aiduna Formation, Piniya mudstone and mudstone bed of the Buru
Formation. The lack of marked unconformities of most of the stratigraphic column, and the
involvement of Pliocene sediments of Buru Formation, so
that most of the deformation occurred during a single orogenic phase at the end of Pliocene time.
So that, southward movement of allochtonous sheets began in the north during Late MioceneEarly Pliocene times. In general, the present structure appears to be the result of the Pliocene
orogenic phase, as in the Papua New Guinea Fold Belt.
A major east-west trending zone of the Tarera-Aiduna Fault was identified in the Omba and
western Waghete sheets areas, which is bounded by two major faults, Tarera Fault to the north
and Aiduna Fault to the south (Fig.4). The Tarera-Aiduna Fault Zone is left lateral strike slip
faultwith a displacement ranging from 50 to 200 km.
XV.2.2 Stratigraphy
Total thickness of sediments is approximately 10.000 m comprising a platform sequence of
Paleozoic and Mesozoic clastic sediments which is overlain by Tertiary limestone and young
Cenozoic clastic deposits, as shown in Fig. 2.

Palaeozoic Sediments

The Modio Dolomite is the oldest unit in this area, which consisting of dolostone and dolomitic
limestone with chert and pyrite nodules; shale, siltstone and calcareous sandstone occur near the
top. The age of the formation ranges from the Silurian to Early or Middle Devonian.
This formation is unconformably overlain by the Early to Late Permian Aiduna Formation,
consisting of fine to coarse-grained sandstone interbedded with shale and siltstone. Coal seams
up to 1.5 m occur most less than 30 cm thick. Cross-bedding, load casts and ripple laminations
are common. The formation was deposited in a paralic to shallow marine and has a maximum
thickness of 2000 m.

Mesozoic Sediments
The oldest unit of the Mesozoic sediments is the Triassic to Early Jurassic Tipuma Formation
which lies conformably on the Aiduna Formation. This formation consists of feldsphatic or
tuffaceous lithic sandstone, micrite, arkose and polymict conglomerate, volcanoclastic
sandstone and tuff. The main structures are ripple marks and crossbedding. The Tipuma
Formation was deposited as a terrestrial, fluviatile facies and has a maximum of 300 m.
Overlying this formation is the Kembelangan Group (Kopai, Woniwogi, Piniya and Ekmai
Formations), which is the Middle to Late Jurrasic Kopai Formation, consisting of glauconitic
sandstone interbeded with siltstone and mudstone, conglomerate,
calcarenite and calcilutite and was deposited in shallow marine with a maximum thickness of 300
m. The sedimentary structures are cross-bedding, bioturbation, burrows and ripple marks.
Ammonites, belemnites, pelecypods and gastropods have been found inthis formation.
The Kopai Formation is conformably overlain by the Late Jurassic to Early Cretaceous Woniwogi
Formation comprising massive orthoquartzite with siltstone and mudstone. The maximum thickness
of Woniwogi Formation is 200 m and was deposited in a beachshore inner shelf with a few of
fossils, as hibolithes sp. and belemnopsis sp.
Overlying this formation is the Late Cretaceous Piniya Mudstone consisting of mudstone,
sandstone and siltstone. It was deposited in a shallow shelf with some fossils, such as ammonites,
inoceramus sp, and echinoderms. The thickness of formation is 800 m.
The uppermost unit of the Kembelangan Group is the Late Cretaceous Ekmai Formation which rest
conformably on the Piniya Mudstone. It consists of massive and thick sandstone, siltstone and
mudstone with a few of belemnite and inoceramus fragments thatwas deposited in an inner shallow
shelf. The maximum thickness is about400 m. Cainozoic Sediments
The Cainozoic sediments include the New Guinea Limestone Group (Waripi and Yawee
Formations) and Buru Formation. The lowermost unit is the Late Cretaceous to Paleocene Waripi

Formation consisting of calcarenite, biocalcarenite, limestone, sandstone and siltstone with marl
and calcilutite. The maximum thickness is 700 m.
The Eocene to Middle Miocene Yawee Limestone comprise massive calcarenite, biocalcarenite,
micrite and calcirudite with minor chalk and sandy calcarenite. This formation is a platform-facies
limestone deposited in shallow shelf and lies conformably on the Waripi Formation. Its thickness is
about 1200 m.
The Late Miocene to Pliocene Buru Formation conformably lies on the Yawee Limestone consisting
of mudstone, lithic sandstone and limestone, shale and polymic conglomerate. It was deposited in
shallow marine through paralic to open marine flood-plain. Mollusc and foraminifera are common
and the thickness of the formation is about 2500 m.
XV.2.3 Depositional Setting
The Akimegah Basin is within Central Range where the pre-breakup stage is represented by the
shallow marine to paralic sediments of the Siluro-Devonian Modio Dolomite and Permian Aiduna
Formations. Rifting began at the Permian-Triassic time producing block faulted basin topography.
During the breakup stage, terrestrial to local marine Tipuma
Formation was deposited in Triassic and Early Jurassic times. Subsequently, the start of the postbreakup stage is marked by a marine transgression which is interpreted as Middle Jurassic in
age. The Kembelangan Group was deposited during the post-breakup phase.
By the end of the Jurassic, the northern margin of the Australian continent faced a newly formed
open ocean connected to the Proto-Pacific Ocean. This ocean was separated from the ocean of
New Tethys.
A platform carbonate regime began in the Late Cretaceous and by Eocene time an extensive
carbonate platform was established. Carbonate sedimentation ceased by the Middle Miocene and
fine clastics were deposited. During the Middle and Late Miocene, earth movements commenced
over the Central Range region. The Melanesian Orogeny was produced by convergence between
the Pacific and Australian Plates resulting two distinct phases. One was an over thrusting of the
continental shelf sediments to the south, forming the Central Range in the Pliocene time, the
other was a southward under thrusting and incipient subduction of the Pacific Plate in the north
during the Pleistocene. The convergence between the Pacific and Australian Plates caused
intense southwards over thrusting of the continental Paleozoic and overlying shelf sediments
along the Central Range.
XV.3. Petroleum System XV.3.1
Source Rocks

The Aiduna Formation is rich with organic matter consisting of coal and coaly shale. The maturity
is post mature. The other Kopai Formation is most likely source for hydrocarbon and the maturity
from late to post mature. The last source Piniya Formation in this area is thick up to 500 m with
organic content probably similar to the Kopai Formation. The maturity is from late to post mature.
XV.3.2 Reservoir
Several potential reservoir rocks in the Paleozoic-Mesozoic sequences have been reported in this
area including the Tipuma Formation and Kembelangan Group (Woniwogi and Ekmai
Formations). The sandstone layers of the Tipuma and Ekmai Formations are potential reservoir
rocks since they have a good porosity and permeability. No oil and gas have been produced in
this area, but oil and gas seepages are known from Kembelangan Group and Waripi Formation.
These indicate that hydrocarbon bearing rocks may occur in the Paleozoic-Mesozoic sequences.
XV.3.3 Seal Rock
The seal rock is provided of thick shale facies in Piniya Formation. The thickness of shale facies is
up to 500. Another seal rock also provided of shale facies in Kopai Formation. XV.3.4 Trap
The traps of hydrocarbon in the Central Range area are expected from structural traps (anticline,
drag fault, ramp anticline, fault anticline and tilted block), stratigraphic traps (reefal buildup and
pinchout) and combination (structural and stratigraphic traps).
XV.4. Hydrocarbon Play
Several plays in the Akimegah Basin are from the Paleozoic to Tertiary in ages. The Paleozoic
Aiduna play is sandstone, which found the stratigraphic trap in this play. The Lower JurassicTriassic Tipuma Formation, the sandstone pinch-out to the basement and unconformity trap is
sealed by Jurassic shales. The Woniwogi Lower Cretaceous play is where the structural traps
caused by wrench tectonics on the shelf area resulting gentle anticline, drag fold, ramp anticline
and tilted block. The Upper Cretaceous Ekmai sandstone play is trapped by anticline, which
Tertiary limestone can act as seal rock. The other is LowerTertiary Waripi carbonate play.
Hydrocarbon Occurences
Several exploratory wells have been drilled. The ASM-1X penetrated 1100 m of Kembelangan
Formation which thins out gradually eastward and is interpreted to be absent to the high block of
Kumbai-1, west of Jaosakor-1 well. The formation is 1700 m deep in this well but it can reach 5000
m in the deepset part of the Pliocene molasse foredeep.
Oil seeps and other hydrocarbon indications in the Akimegah Basin are known -as oil seeps, oil
stained and bituminous fumarola. The oil seeps were found at Magi, Yereka and Oro. The oil seep at

Yereka is relatively light with API gravity 25 to 30 degrees. The oil stained was found at Wamena in
sandstone, showing fluorescence.
The carbonate play is Miocene reefal buildup sealed by marine shales. Several small oil fields have
been producing in Bird's Head since 1930. However, in most of the Central RangeArea the
equivalent limestone and overlying marine shale have been eroded.
A similar geology of the Central Range is the Papua New Guinea side of the fold belt, where
numqrous oil and gas have been discovered in Late Jurassic and Early Cretaceous sandstone in the
frontal thrust zone.
References
Masduki, D and Sugiharto, H., 1993. The Geology and Hydrocarbon Aspects of the Frontier
Central Range of Irian Jaya. Proc. Indon. Assoc. of Geol., 22 `'Ann. Con. Panggabean, H. and
Sufni Hakim, A., 1986. Reservoir rock potential of the PaleozoicMesozoic sandstone of the
southern flank of the Central Range, Irian Jaya. Proc. Indon. Petrol. Assoc., 15 "Ann. Con.
Darman, H. dan Hasan Sidi, F., 2000. An outline of The Geology of Indonesia.