Abstract

Summary The Norwegian-Danish Basin (NDB) holds an optimal position for Carbon Capture Storage activities in northern Europe. However, the storage capacity of the NDB is not well constrained and the integrity of sealing units above closures, as well as the risks associated with crestal salt-related faults, have yet to be characterized. This study provides updated geologic knowledge applicable for the development of underground storage offshore southern Norway. Based on a compilation of a wide dataset of well and seismic data (3D,2D) we present an updated tectono-stratigraphy of the whole basin. We also address how the development of salt structures controlled the accommodation of multiple regional stress episodes, the distribution of porous storage units, and the formation of structural traps within the NDB. Our results suggest that the deformed Triassic records could provide vast structural traps. At the footwall of N-S faults, Jurassic depocenters may hold good storage units but the depositional environments and the distribution of these units might must be accurately mapped. We also investigate erosion features in the Chalk that may have influenced the location of Paleocene reservoirs, reshaping the NDB. Seismic gas signals question the sealing capacity of crestal fault above diapirs.