ABSTRACT Perla gas field is a world-class giant and one of the most significant in Latin America in the last decade. The field was discovered in August 2009. It is the largest gas field in Latin America with approximately 17 trillion cubic feet (tcf) of gas in place, or 3.1 BBOE. The field, located in the shallow waters of the Gulf of Venezuela, was discovered, and is operated by Cardon IV S.A., a 50/50 joint operating company formed by Repsol and Eni. The Perla discovery is important because it is a Play opener for the southern Caribbean domain, triggering a new exploration cycle in the region and proving a previously unknown Tertiary thermogenic petroleum system. The discovery well encountered a thick carbonate section (240 m [787 ft] thick) with excellent primary reservoir properties. The trap is a combination structural and stratigraphic, defined by a northwest–southeast trending asymmetric faulted structure and pinch-out of the carbonate reservoir rock to the north. The proven hydrocarbon column exceeds 350 m (1148 ft) and is in complete hydraulic continuity, and the structural-stratigraphic closure exceeds 100 km 2 (39 mi 2 ).

Abstract The approximately 300-m (984.2 ft)-thick Oligo–Miocene carbonates of the Perla field consist of an overall deepening-upward sequence predominantly composed of larger benthic foraminifera and red algae (oligophotic production) with a minor contribution from shallow-water (euphotic) carbonate components (green algae and corals). Two types of facies successions occur. In the lower part, lithofacies persistently occur in transgressive-regressive sequences bounded by erosional surfaces (Type 1). In Type 1 successions, the interactive analysis of the skeletal components and textures, along with the order of the facies succession (Walther’s Law) permit the establishment of the depositional model, the architecture of the building blocks, and their stacking patterns. Deposited in a context of tectonic subsidence, the building blocks progressively onlapped with backstepping configuration onto a paleoisland. In the upper part, volumetrically less important, lithofacies recurrence is sporadic, while fining-upward successions are common. They commonly have gray-black coloration (pyrite, phosphate, and glauconite) and planktonic foraminifers and nannofossils are abundant (Type 2). They are interpreted as gravity-flow deposits deposited below a chemocline. This requires a younger carbonate factory updip of the cored area, consistent with the subsidence, to supply the rhodolith-rich deposits of the upper part of the Perla limestone. A gentle distally steepened ramp model (distal bulge) is considered. Nevertheless, waves fail to explain the facies distribution in the Perla ramp; the turbulence induced by breaking internal waves is the best candidate to explain the facies distribution in the outer ramp.

Abstract The Gulf of Venezuela lies at the contact of the overriding Caribbean and stable South American plates, an area characterized by a unique geologic setting. A recent three-dimensional (3-D) survey (ca 700 km 2 ) in the eastern part of the Gulf of Venezuela reveals a previously unknown Paleogene to Recent complex structural history. An important strike-slip fault was recognized on the basis of en-echelon fault patterns in the younger Neogene sedimentary sequences in the northern part of the survey. The fault has an en-echelon fault pattern striking NW–SE, showing an impressive similarity to experimental physical models. The strike-slip fault is rooted in the basement with an E–W-trending linear segment. Along the basement, transpressional or transtensional fault segments can be recognized depending on the small variations of the fault direction. The fault was active after the Paleogene and cuts up to the surface indicating recent tectonic activity along the strike-slip fault. The movement along the fault is dextral and because it does not connect the individual en-echelon faults in the sedimentary cover, we suggest that strike-slip movement was minor in the Quaternary. To the east, the fault connects to the northern part of the Paraguana Peninsula, where it was recognized initially during previous geologic mapping as the Punta Macolla fault with an E–W strike. Onshore, the fault displaces Neogene sediments, showing a similar strike-slip pattern. Based on new seismic data, the Punta Macolla strike-slip fault can be traced offshore, at least 40 km (24.8 mi) to the west, with a total length of 100 km (62.1 mi).