WILLEMSTAD – The waters south and southeast of Curaçao have been identified as an important area for future petroleum exploration in a geological study published on October 29, 2026.
Petroleum geologist Marcel P.T. Chin-A-Lien argues that the margins of the Bonaire Basin may offer more favorable conditions for oil and gas accumulation than some of the locations investigated during earlier offshore exploration campaigns.
The report identifies five potential petroleum migration corridors, known as fairways, within the wider basin.
Of these, the southern and southeastern Curaçao–Bonaire margin, designated F1, is identified as the author's principal exploration priority.
According to the study, hydrocarbons generated in deeply buried sedimentary formations may have migrated toward shallower geological structures along the margins of the basin.
These structures could potentially contain oil and gas if suitable reservoir rocks, impermeable seals and geological traps developed at the appropriate time.
The research suggests that certain structures formed during the middle and late Miocene, approximately 14 million to 6 million years ago, may be particularly relevant.
The author believes these formations could have developed after an earlier period of petroleum generation but before a later phase of hydrocarbon migration, potentially improving their chances of retaining oil and gas.
The report also identifies the southwestern transition toward Venezuela's Perla region as another important area for investigation.
However, the study warns that geological structures identified through existing data cannot yet be considered confirmed petroleum traps.
One major uncertainty concerns faults beneath the seabed.
Faults can provide pathways through which oil and gas migrate into reservoirs, but they can also allow hydrocarbons to escape if the surrounding geological seals are damaged.
The report therefore recommends detailed fault analysis before any drilling decisions are considered.
Chin-A-Lien proposes that future exploration focus on identifying geological closures along the basin margins using modern seismic technology.
He also recommends investigating possible natural oil seepage at the sea surface and collecting geochemical information that could help determine whether petroleum is being generated beneath the seabed.
The study emphasizes that no direct offshore source-rock samples or petroleum fluid samples are available from the central Bonaire Basin to confirm the proposed model.
For Curaçao, the findings identify specific offshore areas that could warrant further investigation, but they do not establish that commercially recoverable oil or gas is present.