Seismic exploration of a possible gas-reservoir in the south Apulia foreland

We have observed a strong seismic reflection, with high attenuation below the event, at a depth of 1700-1800 msec TWT (about 700 m below the sea bottom), above the Apulia carbonate platform, in the Salento Adriatic offshore, Otranto Channel. The Merlo-1 explorative well penetrated the Plio-Pleistocene and Upper Miocene sediments covering a structural high of the Cretaceous-Oligocene units of the platform margin. This position, in our opinion, compromised the possibility of crossing the reflector, terminating in onlap or in pinch-out around the structure drilled by the well. We performed dedicated signal analyses in order to evaluate if this bright spot effectively represents a gas reservoir. We used seismic attribute analysis considering amplitude, phase and frequency related attributes, velocity analyses and AVO to improve the interpretation and to obtain semi-quantitative data. Interpretation of all the available seismic profiles was used to map the extension of the possible reservoir and its relation to the Apulia platform margins.