With only a few studies conducted in the past years, South Nicholson Basin is one of Australia’s least-explored geological areas. Despite growing interest in mineral and petroleum prospectivity, minimal seismic, well, and geophysical data exists for the region. A vital outcome of the recently published Exploring For the Future (EFTF) program was the discovery of a new sub-basin, named Carrara Sub-basin. This sub-basin is ∼125 km wide, ∼190 km long and ∼8 km deep. The sub-basin is bound by a gravity low on the SE side of the South Nicholson region and contains thick sequences of Proterozoic rocks of the Northern Lawn Hill Platform (NLHP), Mount Isa Province and McArthur Basin. We utilise new geophysical data, including gravity, magnetic, and sedimentary thickness, to define the borders and structure of the Carrara Sub-basin.
Within the South Nicholson Basin, the Constance Sandstone contains poor to good source rocks, which have the potential to generate gas. Recently drilled wells indicate that within the NLHP, the River and Lawn supersequences of the underlying Isa Superbasin may contain prospective shale gas plays. We apply new data obtained from the recently drilled NDI Carrara-1 well to conduct an exhumation study for the area by estimating decompacted thickness, porosity, and maximum burial depths of significant stratigraphic horizons identified within the South Nicholson Basin and Isa Superbasin. These results shed light on important geological events and parameters in the basin (including uplift, subsidence and sedimentation rate). The resulting burial history is a crucial step in determining the mineral and hydrocarbon prospectivity of the region.