Deep-dive projects Officer–Musgrave

The Officer Basin has been identified as a frontier basin for energy resources. Geoscience Australia is providing new data to improve the geological knowledge of the basin and its geological constraints. Stratigraphy and resource potential studies that analyse existing and newly acquired field samples, have been designed to systematically investigate energy potential.

Map showing the Officer–Musgrave region across Western and South Australia (Raymond et al, 2009 and 2018)

In the Officer–Musgrave project region, groundwater is the only water supply for communities, pastoral use and industry. Palaeovalley groundwater systems are known to occur and provide valuable groundwater resources. The Musgrave Palaeovalley study seeks to map and model the distribution of palaeovalley systems using new airborne electromagnetic (AEM) data acquired across the region in order to develop and refine the hydrogeological conceptual models of these groundwater systems. This work also involves acquiring additional hydrogeophysical and hydrochemical data, and compiling and interpreting pre-existing geological, geophysical and hydrogeological data, to provide valuable information on water resources for remote communities, water managers and industry.

Map showing Musgrave Palaeovalley study area and existing publically available airborne electromagnetic (AEM) data

The Officer Basin, in South Australia and Western Australia, is the focus of a regional stratigraphic study being undertaken as part of the Exploring for the Future program to map and understand Australia’s potential groundwater, mineral and energy resources.

• Madden, R.H.C., Tilbury, R.D. 2022. Exploring for the Future: Petrology of the Officer Basin. Record 2022/035. Geoscience Australia, Canberra
• Carr, L.K., Henson, P., Wang, L., Bailey, A., Fomin, T., Boreham, C., Edwards, D., Southby, C., Symington, N., Smith, M., Halas, L., Jones, T. 2022. Exploring for the Future in the Officer Musgrave region. Geoscience Australia, Canberra
• Edwards, D., Munday, S., Wang, L., Riley, D., Khider, K. 2022. Neoproterozoic and Cambrian chemostratigraphic mega-sequences of the Officer Basin; a regional framework to assist petroleum and mineral exploration. Geoscience Australia, Canberra
• Bailey, A., Wang, L., Dewhurst, D., Anderson, J., Carr, L.K. and Henson, P. 2022. Geomechanical rock properties of the Officer Basin. The APPEA Journal 62, pp. S385-S391
• Wang, L., Bailey, A., Carr, L.K., Edwards, .S., Khider, K., Anderson, J., Boreham, C.J., Southby, C., Dewhurst, D.,  Esteban, L., Munday, S. and Henson, P. 2022. Petrophysical characterisation of the Neoproterozoic and Cambrian successions in the Officer Basin. The APPEA Journal 62(1), pp. 381-399 
• Munday, S., Edwards, D.S., Chandra, J., Wang, L., Forbes, A., Riley, D., Anderson, J., Grosjean, E., Bailey, A., Boreham, C.J. 2022. Defining a chemostratigraphic framework for the Officer Basin. Inorganic and stable isotopic analyses of ten petroleum wells from Western Australia and South Australia. GA record: 2022/007. Geoscience Australia, Canberra
• Bailey, A., Wang, L., Dewhurst, D., Esteban, L., Kager, S., Monmusson, L., Anderson, J., Jarrett, A.J.M., Henson, P. 2021. Exploring for the Future – petrophysical and geomechanical testing program data release, Officer Basin, Australia. GA record: 2021/028. Geoscience Australia, Canberra
• 2021. Officer Basin South Australia 2021 Seismic Reprocessing Processed data Package. Geoscience Australia, Canberra.

In 2021, Geoscience Australia commissioned reprocessing of legacy 2D seismic data as part of the Exploring for the Future program to improve data quality and better image reflective structural features across the region.

• Leven, J.H., Owen, A.J., Hossain, M., Costelloe, R., Fomin, T. 1994. L137 Officer Basin seismic survey, SA, 1993 Stacked and migrated seismic data for lines 93AGS-01, 93AGS-03, 93AGS-04, 93AGS-05, and 93AGS-06. Geoscience Australia, Canberra

• 2021. Officer Basin South Australia 2021 Seismic Reprocessing Processed data Package. Geoscience Australia, Canberra.

In 2022, Geoscience Australia reprocessed and inverted 11 publicly available industry AEM datasets as part of the Exploring for the Future Program to produce conductivity models and a suit of derived datasets using Geoscience Australia Layered-Earth-Inversion as a single standard processing and inversion method to improve continuity and data quality.

• 2022. West Musgrave AEM conductivity models and data release. Geoscience Australia, Canberra