Comparative analysis of oil and gas basins at the ancient and recent passive continental margins of North American Continent

At present the offshore part of the continental margin is the most studied and utilized region (in respect oil and gas), but the time is not far, when the object of petroleum experts interest will be the depth over 1500-2000 m, that is the lower part of the slope and the rise, where the thickness of the sediments reaches up to 10-15 km. The analysis of their depth structure and composition is difficult because the deep water drilling possibilities are limited. Only the study of the ancient continental margin structures can provide to shed light on the entrails in the regions of continental slopes and rises. Two tables were composed (No 1 and No 2), where the distribution of hydrocarbon accumulations in studing margins in time and in space is shown. The analysis of the table No 1 showed that the distribution of the hydrocarbon resources (6.4 billon tons of oil and 5.1 trillion m(3) of gas) on the ancient margins of North American Continent is limited in Paleozoic and Mesozoic sediments composing the slope and the rise of ancient margins. The analysis of the table No 2 showed that dominant part of the oil - 14.2 billon tons and gas - 2 trillion m(3) is accumulated in Mesozoic and Cenozoic sediments in the offshore part of the recent margins. Consequently, recent continental slopes and rises of passive margins, are excellent objects of oil and gas accumulation, where the mother-rocks, reservoirs and fluid-resistive rocks manifest themselves in more optimum correlation.