The influence of the African superplume on the conditions of hydrocarbon generation in rift basins of the late phanerozoic

Background. African rift basins area characterized by changes from exclusively or predominantly gas to oil specialization, depending on the age of the deposits and moving away from the Southern and Western centers of the African superplume. A model accounting for changes in the conditions of hydrocarbon generation in peri- and intracontinental rift basins due to the cooling of asthenospheric rift-forming flows, upon their moving away from the hot plume centers, is proposed.Aim. To determine regional geological patterns of the oil and gas specialization of rift basins and their probable nature.Materials and methods. The study involved a comparative analysis of published data on the geology and oil and gas potential of rift basins (intra- and pericontinental) using seismic tomography data on the temperature state of the deep subsoil of Africa and the adjacent ocean areas.Results. The oil and gas specialization of rift basins was shown to correlate with their age, tectonic development, and position in the modern structure of Africa, as well as with the distance from the Southern and Western centers of the African superplume.Conclusion. The significant importance of the superplume in determining the oil and gas specialization of basins is substantiated.