Lithofacies Controls on Hydrocarbon Generation Potentiality of the Syn-Rift Late Cretaceous Rakopi Deltaic Facies in the North-Eastern Offshore Part of Taranaki Basin, New Zealand

Abstract

The Taranaki Basin in New Zealand presents the most promising territory for strategies of hydrocarbon exploration and development. This basin contains multiple source rock levels in its sedimentary successions formed during syn- and post-rift periods. The deepest source rocks, found in the Rakopi Formation, were deposited in deltaic to deep marine environments and consist of gas-prone coal and organic-rich mudstone lithofacies. However, questions remain about the preservation of their organic carbon. This study integrates various organic geochemical analyses (such as Rock Eval pyrolysis, kerogen petrography, and biomarkers) to assess the hydrocarbon potential of the Rakopi coal and mudstone lithofacies. The organic carbon in Rakopi coals and mudstones originated from oxygenated bottom water, but swift burial during the initial rifting phase facilitated the preservation of organic materials. Rakopi coals are less mature than the mudstone facies and contain a mixture of desmocollinite, suberinite, and resinite macerals. In contrast, the mudstone lithofacies are enriched in liptodetrinite. The maceral mixture in the coal led to its elevated hydrogen index and likely facilitated early expulsion of liquid hydrocarbon phases. Regular steranes, diasteranes, and C29 sterane isomers distribution in the coal and mudstone extracts highlighted a greater terrestrial input in the coals, whereas significant marine input is observed in the mudstone extracts. Biomarkers in the coal and mudstone extracts are similar to some nearby oils discoveries in the Taranaki Basin, thereby confirming oil generation from both coal and mudstone lithofacies in the Rakopi Formation. These findings underscore the potential of liptinite-rich coals to generate liquid hydrocarbon phases at marginal oil maturity levels.