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INTEGRATED REMOTE SENSING AND GEOPHYSICAL DATA ANALYSIS FOR PETROLEUM PROSPECTIVITY MAPPING IN THE SOUTH TORGAY SEDIMENTARY BASIN, KAZAKHSTAN

Dinara Talgarbayeva, V. Mechnik, Arailym Gaipova, Bexultan Niyazbekov

Abstract

The depletion of reserves at mature hydrocarbon fields in Kazakhstan necessitates the development of new approaches for regional petroleum prospectivity assessment. The South Torgay sedimentary basin remains one of the most promising hydrocarbon provinces of the Republic of Kazakhstan, hosting several large and medium-sized oil and gas fields. However, despite its recognized petroleum potential, significant parts of the basin remain insufficiently studied, particularly with respect to the spatial relationships between deep geological structures, modern geodynamic processes, and hydrocarbon accumulation patterns. The integration of remote sensing technologies with conventional geological and geophysical data provides new opportunities for improving regional prospectivity assessment and identifying previously overlooked exploration targets. The objective of this study is to develop a regional-scale petroleum prospectivity map of the South Torgay Basin through the integration of satellite, geological, and geophysical datasets. The methodological framework combines gravity and magnetic field analysis, structural-tectonic interpretation, and Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (InSAR) processing of Sentinel-1 data. Vertical surface displacement fields were derived using the SBAS technique, while potential field datasets were subjected to specialized transformations aimed at identifying fault-controlled structures and zones of crustal weakening. The resulting normalized parameters were integrated through a composite fusion approach to delineate areas of increased hydrocarbon potential. The results reveal a clear spatial association between known hydrocarbon fields, fault systems, negative gravity anomalies, magnetic field features, and zones of contemporary low-amplitude surface uplift. Composite prospectivity maps demonstrate that most producing fields are concentrated within areas where several independent exploration indicators coincide. The proposed methodology represents a novel integrated approach for Kazakhstan and can be applied to other sedimentary basins to reduce exploration uncertainty and improve the efficiency of hydrocarbon prospecting.

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