Avraam Zelilidis

Title : Mediterranean Ridge (MR) could be the equivalent of the Apulian Platform (AP) and the Hellenic Trench (HT) the equivalent of the Apulian Platform Margins (APM)? Their application to the hydrocarbon prospectivity.

Abstract:

The Southeastern Mediterranean, from Crete Island to the territory of Libya, is characterized by the presence of nappes thrusted above the autochthonous Plat-tenkalk series, from Oligocene to early Miocene. South of Crete, the Hellenic Trench (HT) and the Mediterranean Ridge (MR) developed during late Miocene. The MR accretion started at the same time as the HT system subduction started. By the Messinian time, most of the MR had already formed and was elevated above the neighboring abyssal plains. In the uplifted part of the MR, where mud diaper fields (volcanoes) have been discovered, the Messinian layer is significant-ly thinner than on its deeper southern flank.

The new results from western Greece, the western Ionian basin, Gytheio/Sparta areas and Crete Island (Plattenkalk series) showed the same depositional condi-tions, those of an Inner Platform, introducing equivalent depositional conditions between the Ionian Basin (western part) with the Plattenkalk series in the south-ern Peloponnese and Crete Island.

Therefore, Crete Island could represent the Ionian basin, with its pre-rift and syn-rift regimes and was subjected to the compressional regime after Eocene, while the HT could be the equivalent of the Apulian Platform Margins (APM); whereas the MR could represent a platform, equivalent to the Apulian Platform (AP).

During the Oligocene compressional regime, the Crete Island could represent the wedge top region, the Hellenic trench the fore-deep region and the Mediterranean ridge region could be the fore bulge region.

Later and during the southwards migration of the late Miocene compressional re-gime, the MR could represent the wedge top, northward the HT the extensional backstop areas (e.g. Gavdos Trench), and southwards the Sirte abyssal plain the new foredeep.

Taking into account the above considerations and the presence of reefs (at least 26), as reported by HEREMA in 2018 announcements, it seems that these reefs should be developed in AP (now MR). The question is what happened with the nappes movements and the areas they covered. Did the nappes overstep the HT (when they were APM) and cover the MR (when they were AP)?

Audience Takeaway Notes:

• They will understand what is and how was formed the Mediterranean Ridge, its relation with the Apulian Platform Margins and the Ionian Basin. They will understand the relation of the autochthonous metamorphic Plattenkalk series with the development of nappes over them.
• They can compare and correlate thrust front areas and their evolution through the time.
• This research referred to the SE Mediterranean region and therefore the could be used both to expand their research or teaching on similar basins or focuses on SE Mediterranean region.
• The presentation will offer new ideas providing new practical solutions to a problem of searching for hydrocarbon prospects.
• The knowledge of MR evolution will improve the accuracy of a design, or will provide new information to assist in designing future exploration targets.

Biography:

Avraam Zelilidis was born in 1960 in Naousa Imathias of Macedonia in Greece. He received his B.Sc degree in Geology in 1984 and a PhD in Sedimentology in 1988 from the University of Patras, Greece. He worked as a Lecturer since 1993 and as full Professor, in the Department of Geology at the University of Patras, since 2009. He was the Dean of Natural Science School in the University of Patras during 2006-2010. He was the Head of the Department of Geology the period from 2017-2020. Since 2020, he is the Director of Hydrocarbon Institute of University of Patras. His expertise is in the Sedimentary Basin Analysis, Sequence Stratigraphy and the Petroleum Geology. He has carried out several projects on hydrocarbon evaluation for oil companies, using subsurface and surface data, and he has carried out many projects with field courses for oil companies. He has published more than 130 papers in international journals, most of which were focusing in hydrocarbon Prospectivity in Greece, and he presented many of these papers in international meetings around the world (Japan, Europe, Africa and America). He was a supervisor in twelve PhD thesis, related to petroleum geology. He has worked in Gulf of Suez and he has published a cooperation work between Greece and Egypt, with international interest.