Paper Summary
Seismic exploration of the Norwegian Barents Sea began over thirty years ago, but the acquisition of 3-D surveys have only commenced in recent years. The design of these surveys is based on the predominant structural grain inferred from the regional underlying 2D datasets. The Hoop Fault Complex (HFC) is one such area that has attracted interest, leading to the first 3D survey in 2009. The HFC itself is a swarm of NE-SW extensional faults with a shallow strike-slip component cutting across the Loppa High and the Bjarneland Platform (Gabrielsen et al, 1990). Its evolution can be traced back to the late Carboniferous with periods of reactivation. Late Cretaceous regional uplift and erosion followed by Palaeogene subsidence and Neogene glaciation uplift and erosion control whether a working hydrocarbon system is in place.
