Hydrocarbon Generation Potential of Oligocene Oil Shale Deposit at Onshore Penyu Basin, Chenor, Pahang, Malaysia

This is the first study that focuses on the evaluation of a newly discovered oil shale deposit in the eastern Chenor area in the state of Pahang, Malaysia. Previously, this deposit was reported as carbonaceous/coaly mudstone. However, in this study, organic-rich immature carbonaceous mudstone containing above 15 wt % total organic carbon (TOC) is evaluated as oil shale, and that below 3.5 wt % TOC is termed mudstone. Oil shale and mudstone, which are significant sedimentary facies for oil and gas exploration, were investigated using organic geochemical and petrological methods, as well as computed tomography (Micro-CT), pyrolysis, and bulk kinetic techniques, to evaluate their hydrocarbon generation potential. The vitrinite reflectance values are less than 0.5% Ro in all of the analyzed samples, indicating low maturity stage. This is corroborated by Tmax values ranging from 383 to 429 °C. However, based on the kinetic simulation model, the average predicted geological temperature for the onset of hydrocar...