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Assessment of Undiscovered Technically Recoverable Conventional Petroleum Resources of Northern Afghanistan

By T.R. Klett, G.F. Ulmishek, C.J. Wandrey, Warren F. Agena, and the U.S. Geological Survey-Afghanistan Ministry of Mines and Industry Joint Oil and Gas Resource Assessment Team Geographic Information Systems, spatial data management, and petroleum-generation modeling by Douglas Steinshouer

The U.S. Geological Survey-Afghanistan Ministry of Mines and Industry Joint Oil and Gas Resource Assessment Team includes T.R. Klett¹ (Team Leader; tklett@usgs.gov), Abdulla Amirzada² , Amir Selab² , Salam Abdul Muty² , Haidari Gulam Nakshband² , Moeen Gul Wardak² , Abdul Hosine² , Aminulah² , Abdul Wahab² , Gregory F. Ulmishek¹ , C.J. Wandrey¹ (Project Chief, cwandrey@usgs.gov), Warren F. Agena¹ , David J. Taylor¹ , Ronald Hill¹ , Michael Pribil¹ , J. David King¹ , Mark J. Pawlewicz¹ , Charles E. Barker¹ , Thomas S. Ahlbrandt¹ , Ronald R. Charpentier¹ , Richard M. Pollastro¹ , Christopher J. Schenk¹

Table of Contents

Crude oil, natural gas, and natural gas liquids/condensate (collectively called “petroleum”) resources are important for the redevelopment of Afghanistan’s infrastructure. One of the results of more than two decades of strife in Afghanistan is a shortage or absence of energy required to improve living conditions. Food, clothing, shelter, heat, sanitation, and industry, in general, depend on the availability of energy. The presence of petroleum resources has long been known in Afghanistan but these resources were exploited only to a limited extent. Improved living and economic conditions in Afghanistan require increasing the availability of energy, particularly by exploitation of Afghanistan’s petroleum resources.

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) cooperated with the Afghanistan Ministry of Mines and Industry to assess the potentially undiscovered technically recoverable conventional petroleum resources of Afghanistan. Funding for this effort was provided by the U.S. Trade and Development Agency.

The assessment is based on the geologic elements of a total petroleum system, which include (1) source-rock presence, maturation, petroleum generation, and migration; (2) distribution and quality of reservoir rocks; and (3) character of traps and time of formation with respect to petroleum migration. Data from detailed studies of geochemistry, petroleum geology, geophysics, and tectonics combined with historical exploration and production analyses were used to aid in the estimation of the number and sizes of undiscovered petroleum accumulations.

Much of the petroleum resource potential of Afghanistan and all of the known crude oil and natural gas reserves are in northern Afghanistan, located in parts of two petroliferous geologic basins—the Amu Darya Basin to the west and the Afghan-Tajik Basin to the east (fig. 1). In addition to previous exploration, this study shows that potential still exists for additional crude oil and natural gas discoveries in northern Afghanistan.

Available on CD-ROM contact  Energy Team CD Distribution