New insight into subsidence and uplift history of the Central Persian Gulf, Offshore Iran

Total and tectonic subsidence analyses were conducted to constrain the geodynamic evolution of the ~ 5 km-thick Phanerozoic sedimentary succession of the Central Persian Gulf. Data from 42 wells and biostratigraphic studies were used to reconstruct the area subsidence and uplift history. Additionally, 2D seismic lines from pre-Permian horizons helped identify inherited structures and the Hercynian angular unconformity, providing a more accurate understanding of basin evolution.This sedimentary basin is one of the most prolific oil and gas provinces globally. Its evolution reflects a transition from continental extension and passive margin rifting to the development of intrashelf basins, ultimately forming a foreland basin.1D backstripping analysis, spanning ~ 298 million years, allowed quantification of subsidence rates and visualization of vertical movements associated with the reactivation of pre-existing structures. Reactivations occurred in response to pre-Permian orogeny, Permian rifting, Jurassic extension along the Arabian passive margin, Turonian uplift due to ophiolite emplacement, and Coniacian–Pleistocene plate collision. These geodynamic events significantly influenced subsidence patterns.Subsidence rates indicate rapid subsidence during the Permian to Early Triassic, followed by relative quiescence in the Late Triassic to Early Jurassic. Rapid subsidence resumed in the Mid to Late Jurassic, leading to the formation of intrashelf basins. Regional uplifts occurred during the Late Triassic–Early Jurassic, Late Jurassic–Early Cretaceous, Cenomanian–Turonian, and Oligocene–Miocene. The Cretaceous period experienced erosion and/or non-deposition, coinciding with high eustatic sea levels.Finally, the convergence of the Arabian and Iranian plates, associated with the gradual closure of Neo-Tethys, resulted in the formation of a foreland basin that persisted from the Late Cretaceous to the present.