POOL FORMING CONSTRAINS AND THE HYDROCARBON EXPLORATION POTENTIAL OF THE WEST AFRICA COAST BASINS

The West Africa coast basins are typical rift and passive margin basins which had experienced four tectonic evolution periods of pre-rift,syn-rift,transition and passive margin.Pre-salt lacustrine shale and post-salt shallow marine shale were the main source rocks in the basins.Hydrocarbon was mainly accumulated in deltaic and subfan clastics of the Tertiary rollover anticline and salt structural traps.The deep water Tertiary play of the Niger delta and salt related structures within deep and ultra deep water area in Lower Congo Basin are two areas with high hydrocarbon potential.Basins with low oil and gas exploration in the north and the south of the West Africa coast have certain hydrocarbon potential.