Cenozoic

Mesozoic

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Daga Formation

Daga Fm

Period:

Neogene

Age Interval:

Late Miocene – Pliocene

Province:
SouthSudan, Sudan S

Type Locality and Naming

Melut Basin (NE South Sudan - W Ethiopia), and the Rawat Basin (SE Sudan), which are the southeastern and the northwestern basins of the greater White Nile rift basin. It is exposed in the central, northern and southern parts of the Melut basin; and encountered in Wells M-1, M-2, and M-3 in Rawat Basin (Hassan, 2016)

Reference: Dou et al., 2007; Dou et al., 2023 (Melut Basin); Mohammed et al, 2017 (Rawat Basin)

[Fig. 1: Simplified map of the West and Central African Rift System (WCARS) showing the major features discussed in the text and the location of the Melut Basin in South Sudan (modified from Genik, 1993)]

[Fig. 2: Comprehensive stratigraphic columns in the Melut Basin (from Dou et al., 2023)]

[Fig. 3: Rawat Basin- Block 25 in southern Sudan (after Ministry of Petroleum & Gas-OEPA, 2015, Extracted from Mohammed et al., 2017).]

[Fig. 4: Summary of Tectono-stratigraphy of the Rawat Basin (from Mohammed, 2016).]

Lithology and Thickness

In Melut Basin, it is composed predominantly of sandstones in the eastern and central parts of the basin, and of claystones interbedded with siltstones in the northern and southern parts of the basin (Dou et al., 2007). In Rawat Basin, the formation consists of clay/claystone interbedded with thin layer of sand. The claystone is dark greenish grey to greenish grey, minor yellowish grey in color occasionally with Fe nodules, trace carbonaceous material and trace fossils (Mohammed, 2016). Using the wireline logs of well M-1, Hassan (2016) pegged the thickness of the Daga Fm at 127m in that part of the Rawat Basin.

Lithology Pattern:

Sandy claystone

Relationships and Distribution

Lower contact

conformably rests on the Miadol Fm

Upper contact

Agor Fm unconformably rests on the Daga Fm

Regional extent

Melut Basin (NE South Sudan - W Ethiopia), and the Rawat Basin (SE Sudan), which are the southeastern and the northwestern basins of the greater White Nile rift basin.

GeoJSON

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Fossils

In Rawat Basin, it has Spores-Pollen (Concavissimisporites punctatus, Cythiditess australis, Verrucatosporites usmensis, Tricolpites sp., Laevigatosporites haardti) (Mohammed et al., 2017)

Age

Late Miocene-Pliocene (estimated Tortonian-Zanclean in Melut Basin; Messinian-Zanclean in Rawat Basin)NOTE: Age span as estimated for the Melut Basin used here for graphic and paleogeographic display purposes.

Age Span:

Beginning stage:

Tortonian

Fraction up in beginning stage:

0.0

Beginning date (Ma):

11.63

Ending stage:

Zanclean

Fraction up in the ending stage:

1.0

Ending date (Ma):

3.60

Depositional setting

Shallow lacustrine to fluvial setting (Dou et al., 2007). Includes meandering river bank or cut off ox-bow lake in Rawat Basin (Mohammed, 2016)

Depositional pattern:

Additional Information

Compiler:

Enam O. Obiosio, Solomon Joshua Avong and Henry Nasir Suleiman (2024) - Stratigraphic Lexicon compiled from the following publications:

Dou L., Xiao K., Cheng D., Shi B., Li Z. (2007): Petroleum Geology of the Melut Basin and the Great Palogue Field, Sudan. Marine and Petroleum Geology, 24, pp.129-144

Dou L., Xiao K., Wang J. (2023): Petroleum Geology and Exploration of the Bongor Basin. Petroleum Industry Press.

Mohammed H. Z. A., Awad M. Z., Eisawi (2017): Upper Cretaceous to Neogene Palynology of the Rawat Basin, White Nile State, Sudan. Journal of Earth Science & Climatic Change. 08 (04)

Robertson Research International “RRI”, Geological Research Authority of Sudan “GRAS” (2016): The Geology and Petroleum Potential of Southern, Central, and Eastern Sudan. Unpublished Report. Vol. 1-4