Southeast Europe to West Central Asia Region
The region spanning southeast Europe and west Central Asia contains a number of important late Palaeozoic to Cenozoic hydrocarbon basins. Some of these are frontier basins; others have a long history of exploration and production. We have focused on three main areas; the Dinarides-Hellenides, the Black Sea and the Caspian. The petroleum systems in these areas are complex. The principal exploration risks in the Dinarides-Hellenides and offshore in the Adriatic are source rock presence and structural complexity, whilst in the Black Sea and Caspian, they are reservoir presence and quality.
Map of Region
History of Research
CASP has produced over 150 reports on the geological evolution of this region. Extensive fieldwork has been carried out in countries as diverse as Albania, Armenia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Georgia, Greece, Hungary, northern Iran, Kazakhstan, Moldova, Montenegro, Poland, Russia, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Turkey and Ukraine in collaboration with local research institutes.
Key Geological Topics Covered
A large part of CASP work has focused on constraining the likely presence and quality of clastic reservoirs of Cenozoic age in the Black Sea and South Caspian, of Mesozoic age in the Central Caspian and of Mesozoic and late Palaeozoic age in the North Caspian. In the Dinarides-Hellenides region, our research has focused on along-strike variations in structural evolution and style, and the age, facies and provenance of syn-orogenic deposits. Additional research strands across the region have included understanding its Mesozoic to Cenozoic tectonic evolution, describing its stratigraphy, identifying source rock intervals and assessing the potential of Late Jurassic carbonate reef reservoir facies.
Active Research Projects
Most Recent Reports
- Multiproxy provenance study of late Paleocene to late Miocene syn-orogenic sediments of the external Dinarides and Hellenides CASP.DHP2018-20.22
- Regional siliciclastic reservoir quality prediction in the syn- and post-rift fill of the Black Sea CASP.BlackSea2016-18.62
- Provenance of syn-orogenic sediments in the external Hellenides (NW Greece) CASP.DHP2018-20.21
- Seal properties of basal flysch deposits in the external Hellenides (southern Albania) based on Mercury Injection Capillary Pressure (MICP) analysis CASP.DHP2018-20.20
- The external Dinarides of Montenegro: insights from apatite fission track and (U-Th)/He analyses CASP.DHP2018-20.19