Depositional model, cyclicity, and hydrocarbon potential of the Eocene Sakesar carbonate ramp, Salt Range, Pakistan

Abstract The Sakesar Formation in the Salt Range, Pakistan, represents a well-developed Eocene carbonate ramp deposited along the southern Tethyan margin. This study integrates petrographic analysis, palynofacies evaluation, organic geochemical measurements and sequence stratigraphic interpretation to characterise the depositional environments, diagenetic evolution, and petroleum system potential of the formation. Six microfacies (MF1-MF6) were identified through thin-section petrography ranging from high-energy shoal grainstones to low-energy lagoonal marls. Quantitative palynofacies analysis shows energy dependent trends in organic matter composition, with shoal facies dominated by opaque phytoclasts and lagoonal facies enriched in amorphous organic matter (AOM). Organic geochemical measurements including Total Organic Carbon (TOC), Hydrogen Index (HI), Oxygen Index (OI), and Rock-Eval pyrolysis parameters, combined with vitrinite reflectance (Ro) data, indicate that lagoonal marl-micrite facies (MF6) contain Type II kerogen with the highest TOC values (2.80%), elevated HI (293 mg hydrocarbons per gram TOC), and peak oil-window maturity (0.72% Ro). These attributes identify MF6 as the primary oil-prone source rock. Mid-ramp wackestones and packstones (MF3-MF4) possess moderate generative potential and serve as internal seals or baffles, whereas high-energy shoal facies (MF1-MF2) show favourable reservoir characteristics but limited source potential. Sequence-stratigraphic analysis demonstrates that maximum flooding surfaces (MFS) frequently coincide with organic-rich MF6 intervals, producing predictable vertical stacking of source, seal, and reservoir units at parasequence scale. The integrated petrographic, palynofacies, and geochemical framework confirms the dual role of the Sakesar Formation as both a reservoir and a source-seal interval, with metre-scale cyclicity enhancing hydrocarbon charge and trapping efficiency. These findings refine the depositional and petroleum system model of the Sakesar carbonate ramp and provide valuable predictive analogues for Eocene carbonate exploration within the Himalayan foreland basin and related Tethyan settings.