Mixed contourite depositional systems in offshore Sulawesi, Indonesia; Implications for reservoir prospectivity

The Indonesian Gateway, with the Indonesian Throughflow (ITF) as its primary water mass, serves as the key oceanic passages connecting the Pacific and Indian Oceans, playing a crucial role in the global circulation pattern. Waters from the Pacific Ocean flow around the Sulawesi Island along the smaller seaways such as the Sulawesi Sea, Makassar Strait, Lifamatola Strait, Flores Sea and Banda Sea into the Indian Ocean. Offshore basins in Sulawesi are connected by these seaways and record key information concerning the effects of tectonic activity and deep marine sedimentation processes including turbidity and ocean bottom currents. Combined analysis of bathymetry, piston cores and seismic data reveal that sedimentation in offshore basins of Sulawesi is strongly influenced by deep- and bottom-water circulation. Three major contourite-dominated areas have been observed in this study. Contourite depositional systems in these basins have been fed by the Celebes Molasse sediments since the Neogene. Our work on the development of bottom currents on a steep-slope sedimentation can provide new insights to the Bottom Current Reworked Sand as reservoir targets for hydrocarbon exploration and carbon storage. Geophysical bathymetric survey and piston core sampling acquisition conducted in this study reveal seabed morphology and its spatiotemporal characteristic of deep-water mixed systems in the basin to increase potential reservoir quality.