Structure of the Faroe Bank Channel Basin, offshore Faroe Islands

Abstract

The Faroe Bank Channel Basin, which lies on the North Atlantic Margin southwest of the Faroe Islands, is a large, Mesozoic depocentre covering in excess of 10 000 km2. It has undergone little exploration to date and its structural complexity is reflected by the presence of two prominent structural trends: the SW–NE (Caledonian) trend which controls the main Faroe Bank Channel Basin and Faroe Bank Channel Knoll structure and a younger N–S trend which elongates the basin to form the North Faroe Bank Channel Basin area, containing the prominent Regin Smidur volcanic centre. As there is no well control in this frontier basin and seismic data quality precludes conventional interpretation, seismic data in combination with potential field data were analysed in order to determine the structural framework of the area and the geophysical characteristics of the geological units present. Within the basin centre, a thick post-basalt sedimentary section is present. The Paleocene flow basalt sucession is underlain by units of interpreted sedimentary origin which could be considered to be prospective for hydrocarbon exploration. The basin is floored by a block-faulted basement; successive reactivation of basement fault trends by younger tectonic episodes is further demonstrated by the mapping of transtensional features within the basin. Basin structure has been influenced strongly by Paleocene volcanism and subsidence. However, the internal structure of the Faroe Bank Channel Basin has remained relatively unaffected by the younger, Eocene–Miocene compressional events evident on its surrounding margins. Although the Faroe Bank Channel Basin area has yet to be made available for commercial licensing, it is considered to be an interesting area for the future as risk is reduced by exploration not only within the basin but in the adjacent areas to the southeast and in other areas of a similar nature.