The Belayim oil field is an

oil field A petroleum reservoir or oil and gas reservoir is a subsurface accumulation of hydrocarbons contained in porous or fractured rock formations. Such reservoirs form when kerogen (ancient plant matter) is created in surrounding rock by the presence ...

located in the

Gulf of Suez The Gulf of Suez ( ar, خليج السويس, khalīǧ as-suwais; formerly , ', "Sea of Calm") is a gulf at the northern end of the Red Sea, to the west of the Sinai Peninsula. Situated to the east of the Sinai Peninsula is the smaller Gulf of ...

. It was discovered in 1961 and developed by Eni. It began production in 1962 and produces

oil An oil is any nonpolar chemical substance that is composed primarily of hydrocarbons and is hydrophobic (does not mix with water) & lipophilic (mixes with other oils). Oils are usually flammable and surface active. Most oils are unsaturated ...

and

natural gas Natural gas (also called fossil gas or simply gas) is a naturally occurring mixture of gaseous hydrocarbons consisting primarily of methane in addition to various smaller amounts of other higher alkanes. Low levels of trace gases like carbo ...

. The total

proven reserves Proven reserves (also called measured reserves, 1P, and reserves) is a measure of fossil fuel energy reserves, such as oil reserves, natural gas reserves, and coal reserves. It is defined as the " antity of energy sources estimated with reasonabl ...

of the Belayim oil field are around 2.78 billion barrels (373×10⁶tonnes), and production is centered on .

Geology

There have been many studies done on the Suez Gulf for the purpose of evaluating the source rock within the area . Younis concluded that the Black of the Nubia-B reservoir is considered to be a mature potential source rock within the area . Overall, the main source rocks are located in the Pre Miocene succession as they are represented by fine grained clastics and carbonates rocks belonging to the Nubia-B formation from the Carboniferous period, brown limestone of the Dawi Formation from the Late Cretaceous epoch, Esna shale formation from the Paleocene and the Thebes carbonate formation from the Eocene epoch. Thebes and the Dawi formations are the main source rocks and have an average of 0.5-2% TOC, with mainly oil-prone type 2 kerosene.

References

Oil fields in Egypt Red Sea {{Egypt-geo-stub

Geology

See also

References