THE DEVONIAN SUCCESSION IN NORTHERN NOVAYA ZEMLYA, ARCTIC RUSSIA: SEDIMENTOLOGY, PALAEOGEOGRAPHY AND HYDROCARBON OCCURRENCE

105Journal of Petroleum Geology, Vol. 33(2), April 2010, pp 105-122

© 2010 The Authors. Journal compilation © 2010 Scientific Press Ltd

THE DEVONIAN SUCCESSION IN NORTHERNNOVAYA ZEMLYA, ARCTIC RUSSIA:SEDIMENTOLOGY, PALAEOGEOGRAPHYAND HYDROCARBON OCCURRENCE

Li Guo1*, R. Schekoldin2 and R. Scott1

The Novaya Zemlya archipelago in Arctic Russia contains an Early Mesozoic fold-and-thrust beltthat exposes a predominantly Palaeozoic succession. At a number of localities in northern NovayaZemlya, Devonian carbonates within this succession contain solid bitumen.

The Devonian succession was examined in two areas in northern Novaya Zemlya, one on theBarents Sea coast and one on the Kara Sea coast. On the Barents Sea coast, the Early Devoniansuccession comprises non-marine and near-shore marine siliciclastics which grade upward intoshallow-marine platform carbonates. These facies are succeeded by Middle Devonian deeper-water mid-outer shelf black mudstones and shales. The Late Devonian succession consists of earlyFrasnian continental conglomerates and sandstones, and middle-Frasnian to Famennian shallow-marine platform carbonates.

On the Kara Sea coast, the entire Devonian succession is dominated by shallow-marinecarbonates, with deeper-water carbonate turbidites and shales in the late Lochkovian, marinesiliciclastics in the Eifelian and non-marine sandstones in the early Frasnian.

The Devonian palaeogeography of Novaya Zemlya is characterised by a deepwater slope-basin in the centre and east, and a shallow-marine carbonate platform in the south, west andnorth. Extensional tectonism influenced deposition of the Devonian succession, particularly duringthe late Givetian to early Frasnian.

Solid bitumen is confined to carbonate facies and is most abundant in Early Devonian strata,occurring mainly within syn-tectonic fractures and associated secondary pore systems. In themature Timan-Pechora Basin to the south of Novaya Zemlya, Devonian strata are an importantelement in the petroleum system; however, in the less-explored deep basins of the eastern BarentsShelf to the west of Novaya Zemlya, equivalent Palaeozoic strata are generally deeply buriedbeneath younger successions. Information from Novaya Zemlya therefore provides an importantinsight into the likely nature of successions and petroleum systems offshore.

1 CASP, Department of Earth Sciences, University ofCambridge, 181a Huntingdon Road, Cambridge CB30DH, UK.2 Department of Historical and Dynamic Geology, MiningInstitute, 1st line V.O., 2, 199026 Saint Petersburg, Russia.

* author for correspondence, email:[email protected]

Key words: Devonian, stratigraphy, palaeogeography,carbonates, hydrocarbons, Novaya Zemlya, Arctic Russia.

INTRODUCTION

The Novaya Zemlya archipelago is located betweenthree major hydrocarbon provinces: the Barents Seato the west, the Timan-Pechora Basin to the south,and the South Kara and West Siberian Basins to the

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106 The Devonian succession in northern Novaya Zemlya, Arctic Russia

east and SE (Fig. 1). In the Timan-Pechora Basin, theDevonian succession contains both the principalsource unit (the Late Devonian restricted marineDomanik facies) and important carbonate reservoirs(e.g. Ulmishek, 1982; Antoshkina, 1998; Lindquist,1999). However, it is not clear how far prospectiveDevonian strata extend northwards from Timan-Pechora as available offshore data are limited,particularly in the deep basins of the eastern BarentsShelf. The Devonian strata cropping out on NovayaZemlya will therefore help to evaluate sedimentaryfacies distribution and potential hydrocarbon systemsin this region.

Owing to the military significance of NovayaZemlya, access has been restricted for many years.However, CASP participated in expeditions to the

south and north of the archipelago in 2004 and 2005,respectively. Some results of the research in thesouthern part of the archipelago have already beenpresented (Pease and Scott, 2009; Scott et al., inpress). Here, we present initial results from thenorthern part.

The Devonian strata of Novaya Zemlya have beenstudied by Russian geologists since the 1930s, withintense fieldwork and mapping during the 1970s and1980s (Alferov, 1935; Nalivkin, 1947; Bondarev,1963; Bondarev et al., 1978; Bondarev and Andreeva,1981, Cherkesova, 1970a-b; 1973; 1988; Andreevaet al., 1979; Schekoldin, 1981; Sobolev andSchekoldin, 1982). However, most of these studieswere concentrated in southern and central NovayaZemlya, and many of the results have not been

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Fig. 1. (above) Location maps of study localities in northern Novaya Zemlya, Arctic Russia, including (left) theRussian Harbour region on the Barents Sea coast and (right) the Eks Bay-Kanyonaya River section on theKara Sea coast. Stars indicate where bitumen occurrences were observed during fieldwork. Map at bottomleft shows the division of Novaya Zemlya into the north, south, west, central and east regions as recognised byRussian geologists. Map at bottom right shows the regional location of the Novaya Zemlya archipelago.

107Li Guo et al.

published in the international literature. Informationon northern Novaya Zemlya, especially on the eastern(Kara Sea) side, is very limited, and only twopublications (Platonov, 1991; Sobolev et al., 2004)discuss the Devonian geology. As a consequence, thereare many uncertainties regarding the region’ssedimentology and stratigraphy, palaeogeography andstructural geology.

Bitumen has been reported from Devonianlimestones in southern and central Novaya Zemlya(Klubov and Bezrukov, 1992; Kalenich, 2004).However, the only published accounts ofhydrocarbons in northern Novaya Zemlya are solidbitumen and oil seepages in folded Early Devonianlimestones at Inostrantsev Bay on the Barents Seacoast (Kalenich, 2004).

In this paper, we document the stratigraphy andsedimentary facies of the Devonian succession innorthern Novaya Zemlya based on available Russianliterature integrated with field observations. Wepresent a series of palaeogeographic maps for NovayaZemlya through the Devonian. We report new bitumenoccurrences from the Russian Harbour region on theBarents Sea coast and the Eks Bay-Icy Harbour regionon the Kara Sea coast in northern Novaya Zemlya.

GEOLOGICAL SETTING

Novaya Zemlya contains a predominantly west-verging, Early Mesozoic fold-and-thrust belt thatexposes a Precambrian through Early Triassicsuccession (Korago et al., 1992). The fold and thrustbelt is characterised by an overall thick-skinnedstructural style and relatively low levels of exhumationcompared with the Polar Urals and Taimyr. NovayaZemlya is offset by ~600 km from the general trendof the Uralian orogen (Fig. 1), due largely to the formerpresence of an embayment on the margin of Baltica(see Scott et al., in press). Curvature of the fold-and-thrust belt was controlled by west-directed transportwithin this embayment, modified by the geometry ofpre-existing sedimentary basins on the eastern BarentsShelf (Scott et al., in press). Novaya Zemlya isstructurally connected to the Polar Urals through thefoldbelt in the south, and to the Taimyr foldbeltthrough the submerged Siberian Sill in the north (seeFig. 1). However, Novaya Zemlya is distinct fromthese adjacent segments of the Uralian Orogenbecause it lacks substantive evidence of typicalUralide characteristics such as Late Palaeozoicdeformation and collisional granites, ophiolites andhigh-pressure rocks.

Plate reconstructions for the Devonian (forexample, Torsvik and Cocks, 2004) indicate thatNovaya Zemlya, together with the Polar Urals andTiman-Pechora, was situated on the eastern margin

of Baltica, which was in the northern hemisphere veryclose to the equator during the Early-Middle Devonianand gradually drifted northwards during the LateDevonian. A “greenhouse” climate strongly affectedthe deposition of Devonian sediments globally(Copper, 2002), which resulted in extensive carbonateproduction. Rifting occurred in the Barents Sea andTiman-Pechora regions during Devonian time(Kirjukhina et al., 2006; Stoupakova et al., 2006;Petrov et al., 2008), and extensional tectonism mayalso therefore have controlled sediment characteristicsand distribution on Novaya Zemlya.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Fieldwork in northern Novaya Zemlya was organisedby VNIIOkeangeologiya (St Petersburg) and carriedout in August, 2005. Devonian strata are well exposedin coastal cliffs and adjacent river valleys in northernNovaya Zemlya (Fig. 1). The study area on the BarentsSea coast is located in the Russian Harbour region,where Early Devonian strata were examined along thesouth shore of Chukhnovskiy Bay and the west coastof Schmidt Peninsula; Middle Devonian rocks wereobserved along a small river section on SchmidtPeninsula near the south shore of Chukhnovskiy Bay;the Late Devonian succession was studied on the westside of Schmidt Peninsula. On the Kara Sea coast,the Early Devonian succession was examined alongthe southern part of Eks Bay, the northern part ofMutafi Bay, and Kanyonaya River near Icy Harbour.Approximately 100 samples were collected from theDevonian succession,

A series of palaeogeographic maps of NovayaZemlya for the Devonian were compiled, althoughsignificant uncertainties remain owing to limitedexposure, the effects of deformation and lack ofsubsurface data in adjacent offshore areas. Allpalaeogeographic maps are constructed on a present-day base map with no compensation made for theeffects of thrusting.

STRATIGRAPHY ANDSEDIMENTARY FACIES

The Devonian stratigraphy of Novaya Zemlya issummarised in Fig. 2. Russian geologists haverecognised distinct north, west, central, east and southregions, each with its own stratigraphic nomenclature(Andreeva et al., 1979; Bondarev and Andreeva, 1981;Cherkesova, 1970b, 1973, 1988; Platonov, 1991;Sobolev and Schekoldin, 1982; Sobolev et al., 2004).This paper focuses on northern Novaya Zemlya whichcan be divided into western (Barents Sea coast) andeastern (Kara Sea coast) portions.


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109Li Guo et al.

Early Devonian

(i) Barents Sea coastAccording to Sobolev et al. (2004), the boundarybetween the Silurian and Devonian successions in thisarea occurs within the upper part of theOtkupschikovskaya Formation, which consists mainlyof shallow-marine/near-shore shales, siltstones andlimestones, and contains the Early Devonian

brachiopod Protathyris praecursor Kozl. Theremainder of the Early Devonian succession includesthe Lochkovian Yermolaevskaya, Kanyonnaya andVeselogorskaya Formations and the Pragian-EmsianRetovskaya Formation comprising facies that passfrom non-marine and near-shore siliciclastics toshallow-marine carbonates.

A continuous Early Devonian succession wasexamined along the south shore of Chukhnovskiy Bay

Fig. 3. Lithological log of the Lower Devonian Veselogorskaya Formation and field photographs from theSchmidt Peninsula on the Barents Sea coast of northern Novaya Zemlya (location in Fig. 1). (a) Reddishsiltstones and greenish-grey fine-grained sandstones; (b) ripple structure; (c) tepee structure.

c

a

LITHOLOGY PHOTOS

Phot

o a

Phot

o b

Phot

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Dark grey shales

Grey sandstones

Grey sandstones

Reddish siltstones

Reddish siltstones

Reddish sandstones

Reddish sandstones

Reddish siltstones and mudrocks with tepee structure

Grey sandstones with ripples and cross - stratification

DESCRIPTION

b

0(m)

10

20

30

Red siltstones/greenish grey fine-grained sandstones,bioturbated

Upper contact wavy, uneven

Coarsening-up sequences

M S C


on the east side of the Schmidt Peninsula (Fig. 1). TheLochkovian Yermolaevskaya Formation, 600m thick,consists mainly of variegated (green, red and pale grey)sandstones, siltstones and quartzites, intercalated withminor dolostones. The Lochkovian KanyonnayaFormation, conformably overlying the YermolaevskayaFormation, is 130-250m thick and comprises grey

quartzites and thin beds of green cherty shales(Andreeva et al., 1979). The late LochkovianVeselogorskaya Formation, 150-200m thick, includescyclic, reddish to green-grey siltstones and fine-grained sandstones, pale grey sandstones withfeldspar and quartz, interbedded with greenish-greysiltstones and silty dolostones with bioturbation,

Fig. 4. Lithological log of the lower part of the Lower Devonian Retovskaya Formation and field photographsfrom the south shore of Chukhnovskiy Bay, Barents Sea coast of northern Novaya Zemlya (location in Fig. 1).(a) General view of the upper part of the succession; the top approximately 20 m contains abundant bitumen;(b) Coral limestone from the top part of the succession; (c) Stromatolites from the lower part of theformation. D1vg = Lower Devonian Veselogorskaya Formation.

b

a

LITHOLOGY PHOTOSFault

Fault

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Predominant reddish clastics, with dessication

Stromatolites, dolostones and thin beds of shales

DESCRIPTION

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111Li Guo et al.

ripples, mud cracks and tepee structures (Fig. 3). Thinbeds of dark grey shales also occur and are associatedwith grey siltstones and sandstones. Shrinkage anddesiccation cracks also characterise the upper part ofthe Veselogorskaya Formation at the south shore ofChukhnovskiy Bay. The formation contains fishfragments: Pteraspidida, Arctolepidida, Acanthodi,

Hererostraci, and Cephalaspis sp in the middle partof the succession (Andreeva et al., 1979). TheseLochkovian sediments represent non-marine andnear-shore depositional environments.

The Veselogorskaya Formation is conformablyoverlain by the Pragian-Emsian RetovskayaFormation that represents shallow-marine

Fig. 5. Lithological log of the upper part of Lower Devonian Bistrinskaya Formation and field photographsfrom the Kanyonaya River, Kara Sea coast of northern Novaya Zemlya (location in Fig. 1).(a) Stromatoporoids in dolomitized limestones; (b) Dark grey bitumen-bearing bioclastic limestones, overlainby mudstones. (c) Fractured dolomitized coral limestone with bitumen in fractures.

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LITHOLOGY PHOTOS

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Phot

o b

Phot

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Dark grey shales &thin beds of limestones

Coral-stromatoporoid limestones

Dolomitized coral limestoneswith fractures that are filled with bitumen



Black shales/mudrocks interbeddedwith thin limestones

Alternating bioclastic limestones and shales/mudrocks

DESCRIPTION

b

0

15

30

45

60

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Coral


depositional environments. Only the lower ~200m ofthe Retovskaya Formation is exposed along the southshore of Chukhnovskiy Bay (in total, the formation is400-450 m thick) (Fig. 4). The upper part of theformation is probably cut out by a fault. An intervalapproximately 10m thick of stromatolites, interbeddedwith dolostones, comprise the basal part of theRetovskaya Formation. This interval grades up intogrey and pale brown limestones and dolostones. Theupper part of the succession was largely covered byice during fieldwork, but the topmost portion exposed,approximately 20m thick, consists of dark grey corallimestones and bioclastic limestones. This unit recordsa progressive transgression. It is characterised bymineralised breccias and associated fractures, densejoints, and dissolution pores which contain abundantsolid bitumen.

(ii) Kara Sea coastThe Early Devonian succession on the Kara Sea coastincludes the upper part of the Reliktovskaya Formationand the Bistrinskaya and ShevchenkinskayaFormations (Fig. 2). According to Sobolev et al.(2004), the upper part of the Reliktovskaya Formationconsists of dark grey and black shales, siltstones, andsandstones, which were deposited in shallow marineenvironments. The Bistrinskaya Formation(Lochkovian-early Pragian) at Icy Harbour (also calledLedyanaya Harbour) can be divided into two parts:the lower part, 350m thick, mainly comprises shallow-marine bioclastic and stromatolitic limestones; theupper part, 200m thick, is dominated by dark greycalcareous mudstones and siliciclastic mudrocks,alternating with bioclastic limestones and dolostones.The Shevchenkinskaya Formation (middle Pragian-Emsian), more than 600m thick in the Shirokaya Riversection, consists mainly of dolostones, stromatoliticlimestones and dolomitized limestones. Bioclastic

limestones interbedded with argillaceous limestonesoccur at the top of the formation. The formationcontains the late Emsian conodont Polygnathusserotinus (Telf.).

The Bistrinskaya Formation at the northern end ofMutafi Bay, Eks Bay and the Kanyonaya River sectionwas examined in detail during this study (Fig. 1).Carbonates are dolomitized and strongly fractured,faulted, partially dissolved, and locally recrystallizedas a result of intense deformation, particularly at thenorthern end of Mutafi Bay and the northern end ofEks Bay. Along the Kanyonaya River section, thelower part of the Bistrinskaya Formation consists ofpale grey and grey intertidal stromatolitic limestonesand dolostones; the upper part of the formation iscomposed of dark grey limestones containingabundant corals, stromatoporoids and brachiopods,interbedded with shales and mudstones (Fig. 5). Thelimestones are largely dolomitized. At the southernend of Eks Bay, the upper part of the BistrinskayaFormation consists of mid to outer shelf carbonateturbidites, and alternating bioclastic limestones (withlarge-sized brachiopods) and argillaceous limestones.The Bistrinskaya Formation is overlain by the Middle-Late Carboniferous Sporonavolokskaya Formation.Russian geological maps indicate that this contact isan unconformity, but the contact is probably locallyfaulted.

Middle Devonian

(i) Barents Sea coastThe Middle Devonian succession on the Barents Seacoast is represented by the Chukhnovskaya Formation,which is 400-500m thick and conformably overliesthe Early Devonian Retovskaya Formation (Andreevaet al., 1979). The Chukhnovskaya Formation consistsmainly of deepwater basin mudrocks, shales and

Fig. 6. Dark grey and blackshales/mudrocks (MiddleDevonian ChukhnovskayaFormation) exposed along ariver section on the east ofthe Schmidt Peninsula,Barents Sea coast ofnorthern Novaya Zemlya(location in Fig. 1).

113Li Guo et al.

siltstones, intercalated with a small proportion ofmicritic limestones (Andreeva et al., ibid.).Cephalopods including Arionoceras certum Foerste,Michelinoceras equisetum (Barr.) (Givetian) andMichelinoceras sp. have been identified from theformation. Andreeva et al. (1979) also found largeblocks (up to 20×20×10 m) and clasts of shallow-marine limestones within the mudrock units, whichthey considered to have been transported from thepresent-day Barents Sea by debris flows.

The Middle Devonian Chukhnovskaya Formationcrops out in the eastern part of the Schmidt Peninsulain the Russian Harbour region. Massive dark shalesand mudrocks in the formation were briefly examinedalong a river section on the eastern side of thePeninsula (Fig. 6). The black shales cover a large areaand are possibly of source rock potential althoughTOC is yet to be determined.

(ii) Kara Sea coastThe Middle Devonian strata on the Kara Sea coastare assigned to the Rozinskaya Formation, which

consists of 180m of siliciclastics overlain by 430mthick of carbonates (Platonov, 1991). The siliciclasticscomprise brown and yellowish shallow-marinesandstones and granule conglomerates intercalatedwith black, locally greenish or brown mudstones andsiltstones. Sandstones display cross-bedding, ripplesand bioturbation and comprise 70% of the totalthickness of the unit. Granule conglomerate beds canbe up to 1m in thickness. Mudstones containdolomitised limestone nodules and seams (up to 20cmthick) with corals and brachiopods. The carbonatesinclude lagoonal and shallow-marine bioclasticlimestones, coral limestones, dolomitised limestonesand dolostones. Brachiopods Bornhardtina sp. and?Chascothyris sp. have been identified from thelimestones at the top of the formation (Platonov, 1991).

Late Devonian

(i) Barents Sea coastLate Devonian strata on the Barents Sea coast aredivided into the Konglomeratovaya (early Frasnian),

Corals and stromatoporoids

A

B

Fig. 7. A coral bioherm (A,above) and stromatoporoid-coral biostromes (B, below) inthe lower part of the LateDevonian VoroninskayaFormation, west coast of theSchmidt Peninsula, BarentsSea coast of northern NovayaZemlya (location in Fig. 1).


Voroninskaya (late Frasnian) and Karbasnikovskaya(Fammenian) Formations (Fig. 2). The boundarybetween the Middle and the Late Devonian hasvariously been interpreted as conformable (Andreevaet al., 1979) or unconformable (Sobolev et al., 2004).The Konglomeratovaya Formation ranges from 100to 300m in thickness and consists of alluvial fansandstones and conglomerates with a leaf flora(including Archaeopteris cf. roemeriana). It isunconformably overlain by the VoroninskayaFormation which is 300m thick. It consists of shallow-marine argillaceous limestones intercalated withdolostones, shales, calcareous sandstones andsiltstones in the lower part, which grade upwards intoshallow-water platform bioclastic limestones andlimestones with biostromes. The overlyingKarbasnikovskaya Formation is 400m thick andcomprises mainly shallow-water platform dolomiticlimestones and dolostones. Stromatoporoid and algalbiostromes are present at the top part of the formation,where late Fammenian foraminifera Quasiendothyracommunis Raus., and Q. cf. kobeitusana Raus occur.

The Late Devonian succession on the east coastof the Schmidt Peninsula was examined. Here, theKonglomeratovaya Formation consists of a thicksequence of interbedded conglomerates, sandstonesand mudstones. Conglomerates are commonly clast-supported, with pebble-sized, rounded to sub-roundedclasts. The majority of the clasts are carbonates; chertand mudstone clasts are less common. Metamorphicand igneous clasts are also present. Sandstones aremedium- to coarse-grained with cross-bedding;pebble-sized clasts show imbrication in places.Mudstones are less common and poorly exposed. TheKonglomeratovaya Formation thins towards the westside of the Schmidt Peninsula where it is composedof sandstones. Along the coast of the west SchmidtPeninsula, the contact between the Konglomeratovayaand the Voroninskaya Formations is not well exposed.The lower part of the Voroninskaya Formation isfolded and faulted, and consists of dark grey coral-stromatoporoid bioherms and biostromes, interbeddedwith bioclastic limestones and dolomitized limestones(Fig. 7). Sandy dolostones and thin beds of blackshales also occur. The Karbasnikovskaya Formationis dominated by pale grey dolostones including coarsegrainstones.

(ii) Kara Sea coastThe boundary between the Middle and Late Devoniansuccessions on the Kara Sea coast has been regardedas either a conformity (Platonov, 1991) or possibly aregional erosion surface (Sobolev et al., 2004). TheLate Devonian succession contains the Shirokinskaya(early Frasnian) and Mutafinskaya (late Frasnian-Famennian) Formations (Fig. 2). The Shirokinskaya

Formation is less than 200m thick and consists ofreddish continental siltstones and sandstones withplant detritus (Platonov, 1991). The MutafinskayaFormation is approximately 340 m thick and consistsmainly of peritidal and littoral carbonates, with thickstromatolitic limestones in the lower part, which gradeupwards into interbedded dolostones and limestoneswith abundant dolostone intraclasts and lenses of flat-pebble conglomerates (Platonov, 1991). The formationcontains the early Frasnian brachiopods Uchtospirifernalivkini, U. cf. murchisonianus, U. cf. timanicus,charophyte algae and late Famennian foraminifera.

The Late Devonian succession on the Kara Seacoast was not examined.

PALAEOGEOGRAPHY ANDSEDIMENTARY FACIES

Early DevonianAt the beginning of Early Devonian time, siliciclasticswere deposited over much of Novaya Zemlya in non-marine to nearshore settings, which were progressivelyreplaced by more marine environments from the eastduring the Lochkovian. A shallow sea withembayments and islands covered much of NovayaZemlya; stromatolites are common in the associatedsediments (Fig. 8A).During the Lochkovian,continental environments probably existed to the NW,and deltaic and fluvial environments developed alongthe western and NW margin including the RussianHarbour region. A deepwater basin is interpreted tohave been present to the east (Korago et al., 1992).The area to the east of Novaya Zemlya (the UralianOcean) is interpreted to have been underlain byoceanic crust throughout most of the Palaeozoic.Oceanic crust is also interpreted to have been presentto the east of the Urals which formed the passivemargin of Baltica (Ziegler, 1988).

Marine transgression continued into the earlyPragian (Fig. 8B), and the NW margin of NovayaZemlya was gradually transformed into a shallow-marine shelf with deposition of stromatolites. Deeper-water depositional environments occurred in the NEpart of Novaya Zemlya with carbonate turbidites. Bythe late Pragian, extensive carbonate productionthroughout most of Novaya Zemlya was taking placeon a shallow-water shelf with abundant coral-stromatoporoid reefs. Only the area east of TaynayaBay in the south is characterised by a deeper-waterslope on which argillaceous limestones and shaleswere deposited (Fig. 8B).

Further transgression and the initiation ofextensional faulting during the Emsian led todeepwater slope-basin environments covering muchof Novaya Zemlya (Petrov et al., 2008). However, ashallow-water carbonate shelf remained at the

115Li Guo et al.

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southern and the northern margins of Novaya Zemlya.This was the peak time for coral-stromatoporoid reefgrowth in the south of archipelago.

Middle DevonianDuring the Eifelian, the deepwater slope and basinenvironments extended further towards the west ofNovaya Zemlya, including the Russian Harbour region(Fig. 8C). The expansion of these deepwaterenvironments was associated with global high sealevels from the end of the Emsian to the Givetian (c.f.Copper, 2002). However, a shallow-water carbonateshelf persisted along the southern margin of NovayaZemlya, with the development of coral biostromes andbioherms. Near-shore shallow-water depositionalenvironments also occurred in the NE (ShirokayaRiver), with siliciclastic deposition.

The palaeogeography of the Givetian was similarto that of the Eifelian in Novaya Zemlya: much of theregion was covered by deepwater slope and basinenvironments. A shallow-water carbonate shelf stillexisted along the southern margin, and the northernmargin was emergent. However, the remainder ofnorthern Novaya Zemlya comprised a shallow-marinecarbonate shelf.

Late Givetian to early Frasnian rifting occurred inTiman-Pechora and may also have affected NovayaZemlya (Petrov et al., 2008), and resulted in thereactivation of basement faults. This phase ofdeformation was associated with uplift which resultedin a rapid reduction in the shallow-water shelf areaand subaerial exposure with considerable erosion,particularly in the SE and west of Novaya Zemlya.

Late DevonianRifting continued across the Barents Shelf into theLate Devonian and was accompanied by volcanicactivity in the earliest Frasnian, which resulted inwidespread basalts and tuffs in many parts of NovayaZemlya (Timofeeva, 1982; Orgo and Kalenuch, 2004;Korago and Timofeeva, 2005) (Fig. 8D). However,no volcanics have been reported from northernmostNovaya Zemlya, and massive alluvial and fluvialconglomerates and sandstones accumulated, such asin the Russian Harbour and Shirokaya River areas.The northern margin remained emergent.

Post-rift thermal subsidence occurred during LateDevonian time across the Barents Shelf (Kirjukhinaet al., 2006) and was accompanied by a marinetransgression. Initial flooding during middle Frasnian

A

B

Fig. 9. Field photograph of bitumen inthe upper part of the Early DevonianRetovskaya Formation, ChukhnovskiyBay, Russian Harbour region, BarentsSea coast of northern Novaya Zemlya(location in Fig. 1). (A) General view offractured, brecciated and veined corallimestones; some fractures have beenmodified by probable hydrothermaldissolution. (B) Close-up showing thatdissolution pores are lined with calcitecement; solid bitumen fills theremaining pore spaces (arrow).

117Li Guo et al.

time in the Timan-Pechora Basin resulted in depositionof the Domanik facies, the most important source rockinterval (Lindquist, 1999). However, in the south, westand north of Novaya Zemlya, this transgressionresulted in a return of shallow-water carbonate shelfconditions. As the transgression progressed in the lateFrasnian, massive stromatolites were formed in theShirokaya River area; bioherms and biostromesdeveloped in the Russian Harbour region. A deepwaterbasin persisted to the east of Novaya Zemlya, and wasseparated from the shelf by a narrow slope zone.Contemporaneously, hemipelagic organic-richsediments were deposited to the east (Schekoldin,1997).

The Famennian palaeogeography of NovayaZemlya has similar features to that of the late Frasnian.However, no bioherms (or corals) have been found inFamennian carbonates. The northern margin ofNovaya Zemlya remained emergent, and the rest ofthe northern archipelago was covered by a shallow-water carbonate shelf with massive stromatolites inthe NE (Fig. 8E). In SW Novaya Zemlya, coarse-grained turbidites were deposited in a submarinecanyon connected to a fan spreading out to the eastand north (Schekoldin, 1997).

Transgressive conditions returned at the end ofthe Famennian and continued into the EarlyCarboniferous.

HYDROCARBON OCCURRENCES

Barents Sea coastAbundant solid bitumen was observed in the upperpart of the Early Devonian Retovskaya Formation onthe south shore of Chukhnovskiy Bay in the RussianHarbour region. The bitumen-bearing unit isapproximately 20m thick and consists of dark greycoral limestones and bioclastic limestones. The unitis characterised by extensive fracturing, brecciationand veining (Fig. 9). Some fracture walls and brecciafragments are modified by hydrothermal dissolutionand mineral precipitation. Textural relationshipsvisible in the field suggest that brecciation and veiningis largely syn-tectonic to post-tectonic, and post-datescleavage formation. Brecciation and fracturing mayhave been associated with hydraulic over-pressuringclose to faults as the succession was thickened duringthrust repetition. A generally syn-tectonic to post-tectonic origin does not preclude the possibility thatsome pre-tectonic dissolution features may also be

A

B

Fig. 10. Field photographs ofbitumen in a fractured zonein the Early DevonianBistrinskaya Formation,north end of Mutafi Bay,Kara Sea coast of northernNovaya Zemlya (location inFig. 1). (A) Bitumendispersed through cementedcavities. (B) Bitumen filledpore spaces.


preserved. Fractures and solution voids are largelyfilled with calcite and quartz cements. However, manyremaining spaces are filled with solid, black bitumenwhich has a vitreous lustre and conchoidal fracture.Vugs and modified fractures are of variable size, upto several centimetres across.

In addition, some carbonate beds in the lower partof the Retovskaya Formation are impregnated withbitumen along this section. The impregnated beds areseparated by dolostones and probably bounded byfaults (unclear due to ice cover).

Kara Sea coastAt the northern end of the Mutafi Bay, the EarlyDevonian Bistrinskaya Formation is intensely faultedand contains densely spaced fractures and joints.Where these fractures and joints are not filled withcalcite cement, remaining spaces are commonlyoccluded by solid bitumen (Fig. 10). In some places,bitumen is dispersed through cements (or calcite-bitumen intergrowths) in pore spaces and fracturezones. Hydrocarbon occurrences are widespread andcan be traced through the section over zones that areseveral tens of metres across and up to 30m thick.

The Bistrinskaya Formation is also found furthernorth in Eks Bay, where carbonates are again intensely

fractured and faulted. Abundant solid bitumen occursin fractures and pore spaces.

Solid bitumen also occurs in the BistrinskayaFormation along the Kanyonaya River at Icy Harbour.The formation is commonly fractured and faulted, andconsists of alternating coral limestones andmudstones. Limestone units are <1m to 4 m thick.Limestones are partially dolomitized and containabundant joints which are filled with calcite cement(Fig. 11A-B). Solid bitumen fills remaining spacesalong joints and also occurs dispersed in calcitecements, some of which occur along fault planes.Bitumen also occurs in the fractured Early DevonianSchvechenkinskaya Formation which is composed ofdolomitized bioclastic limestones (Fig. 11C-D).

DISCUSSION AND IMPLICATIONS

Fig. 12 summarizes the stratigraphy, sedimentaryfacies and distribution of solid bitumen in theDevonian succession of northern Novaya Zemlya. Thebitumen is confined to carbonate facies and is mostabundant in Early Devonian strata on both the Barentsand Kara Sea coastlines. The bitumen-bearing rocksrange from individual beds to units several tens ofmetres thick.

A

C

B

D

Fig. 11A-B. Field photographs of bitumen in fractured dolomitized coral limestones (arrowed in A) and alonga fault plane (B). Lower Devonian Bistrinskaya Formation. C-D: Bitumen dispersed along cemented joints.Lower Devonian Shevchenkinskaya Formation, Kanyonaya River, Kara Sea coast of northern Novaya Zemlya(location in Fig. 1).

119Li Guo et al.

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The occurrence of hydrocarbon in the Devoniancarbonates is evidence of an active petroleum systemin the region. The area of hydrocarbon occurrence canbe extended further NE from the study area to includethe Inostrantsev Bay region (NE of Russian Harbour)on the Barents Sea, where both solid bitumen andactive oil seepages have been described from EarlyDevonian limestones (Kalenich, 2004). Bitumen hasalso been reported from Devonian rocks in southernNovaya Zemlya (Parnell et al., 2001). The widedistribution of solid hydrocarbons in Novaya Zemlyasuggests that they may also occur in Devoniancarbonates in adjacent offshore basins.

The age of the hydrocarbon source rocks is notknown. Bitumen from Devonian rocks in southernNovaya Zemlya may be derived from Devonianorganic-rich limestones and shales (Parnell et al.,2001). Devonian source rocks (deep marine shalesand limestones) occur in Timan-Pechora andhydrocarbons migrated into reservoirs ranging in agefrom Ordovician to Triassic (mostly Devonian andPermian) (Lindquist, 1999). The source ofhydrocarbons along the Barents Sea coast in northernNovaya Zemlya may be organic-rich intervals in thethick Middle Devonian shales and mudrocks. Thesemay also be the source of the hydrocarbons on theKara Sea coast. Devonian deepwater limestones andmudrocks along the eastern margin of Novaya Zemlya(Fig. 2) may be the source of the Devonianhydrocarbon accumulations along the Kara Sea coastin northern Novaya Zemlya.

CONCLUSIONS

Devonian strata are well exposed on both the BarentsSea and Kara Sea coastlines of northern NovayaZemlya, Arctic Russia. On the Barents Sea coast, theEarly Devonian succession comprises non-marine andnear-shore marine siliciclastic sedimentary rocks inthe lower part, which grade upward into shallowmarine platform carbonates. These facies aresucceeded by Middle Devonian deeper-water mid-outer shelf black mudstones and shales. The LateDevonian succession consists of early Frasniancontinental conglomerates and sandstones, andmiddle-Frasnian to Famennian shallow-marineplatform carbonates.

The entire Devonian succession on the Kara Seacoast is dominated by shallow-marine carbonates, withdeeper-water carbonate turbidites and shales in thelate Lochkovian, marine siliciclastics in the Eifelian,and non-marine sandstones in the early Frasnianintervals.

The Devonian palaeogeography of Novaya Zemlyais characterised by a deepwater slope-basin in thecentre and east, and a shallow-marine carbonate

platform in the south, west and north. Extensionaltectonism influenced deposition of the Devoniansuccession, particularly during the late Givetian toearly Frasnian.

Solid bitumen occurs widely in Devoniancarbonates on both the Barents Sea and Kara Seacoastlines. Bitumen is mainly hosted by syn-tectonicfractures and associated secondary pore systems.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

We thank VNIIOkeangeologiya (St. Petersburg) fortheir organization role in the Novaya Zemlyaexpedition. We also thank the crew of the researchvessel “Gidrolog”, operated by the RussianHydrographic Office in Murmansk, for their logisticsupport in Novaya Zemlya. CASP acknowledges theindustrial sponsors of its Arctic research withgratitude. Journal review was by Gregory Ulmishek(Direct Petroleum Ltd).

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Documents

THE DEVONIAN SUCCESSION IN NORTHERN NOVAYA ZEMLYA, ARCTIC RUSSIA: SEDIMENTOLOGY, PALAEOGEOGRAPHY AND HYDROCARBON OCCURRENCE