Associate Professor Simon Holford
Associate Professor in Petroleum Geoscience
Australian School of Petroleum & Energy Resources
Faculty of Engineering, Computer and Mathematical Sciences
Eligible to supervise Masters and PhD - email supervisor to discuss availability.
I am an Associate Professor of Petroleum Geoscience at the Australian School of Petroleum, University of Adelaide. With my colleague Ros King (Physical Sciences), I lead the Stress, Structure & Seismic (S^3) Research Group; this is a multidisciplinary group of academics, research staff and HDR students working mostly on applied problems related to structural geology and geomechanics in sedimentary basins. Our group has received continuous ARC support since 1997, and our research income is ~$1M/year.
- My Research
- Career
- Publications
- Grants and Funding
- Teaching
- Supervision
- Professional Activities
- Contact
My main research interests are;
1) Magmatic systems in sedimentary basins. This work is focused on the interactions between igneous intrusive and extrusive systems and basin structure, stratigraphy and the elements of the petroleum system. Current projects on this topic involve collaboration with the University of Aberdeen and Imperial College London, and are funded by CSIRO, Chevron and ASEG.
2) Structural permeability. This work is focused on understanding the intrinsic and extrinsic drivers behind fracture-hosted fluid flow in sedimentary basins, and current projects on this topic are funded by the ARC, ARENA, the Geological Survey of South Australia, IMER and ASEG.
3) The evolution of Australia's 'passive' southern rifted margin. This work is focused on understanding the tectonic evolution of the southern Australian margin. This work was originally funded by an ARC Australian Postdoctoral Fellowship, and is now primarily focused on the Bight Basin. I am the lead proponent on an IODP Complementary Project Proposal for scientific drilling in the Great Australian Bight.
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Appointments
Date Position Institution name 2018 Associate Professor of Petroleum Geoscience University of Adelaide, Adelaide 2014 - 2017 Senior Lecturer in Petroleum Geoscience University of Adelaide 2012 - 2013 Lecturer in Petroleum Geoscience University of Adelaide 2008 - 2011 ARC Australian Postdoctoral Fellow University of Adelaide 2007 - 2007 Research Fellow University of Adelaide 2006 - 2007 Research Associate University of Birmingham -
Awards and Achievements
Date Type Title Institution Name Country Amount 2018 Fellowship Visiting Research Fellow Australian School of Petroleum Australia — 2015 Award ASEG Best Paper — — — 2015 Research Award AAPG Top 10 Best Poster American Association of Petroleum Geologists United States — 2014 Award DI Groves Medal — — — 2013 Research Award PESA Best Student Paper Petroleum Exploration Society of Australia Australia — 2012 Award APPEA Best Paper — — — 2011 Award Walter Howchin Medal Geological Society of Australia Australia — 2008 Fellowship ARC Australian Postdoctoral Fellowship Australian Research Council Australia — -
Education
Date Institution name Country Title 2001 - 2005 University of Birmingham United Kingdom PhD 1998 - 2001 Keele University United Kingdom BSc (Dual Hons), Geology & Geography, First Class -
Research Interests
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Journals
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Book Chapters
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Conference Papers
Year Citation 2019 Hardman, J., Schofield, N., Holford, S., Hartley, A., Jolley, D., Morse, S., . . . Zimmer, E. (2019). Controls on the distribution of volcanism and intra-basaltic sediments in the Cambo-Rosebank region, west of Shetland. In 81st EAGE Conference and Exhibition 2019. 2017 Luniniecky, D. C., King, R. C., Holford, S. P., Bunch, M. A., Hill, S. M., & Hore, S. B. (2017). The effects of deformation bands on uranium-bearing fluid migration in sedimentary sequences, Flinders Ranges, South Australia. In P. MercierLangevin, B. Dube, M. Bardoux, P. Ross, & C. Dion (Eds.), Mineral resources to discover: Proceedings 14th SGA Biennial Meeting (pp. 771-773). Quebec City, Canada: Society for Geology Applied to Mineral Deposits. 2017 Tassone, D., Holford, S., King, R., Tingay, M., & Hillis, R. (2017). Contemporary stress and neotectonics in the Otway Basin, southeastern Australia. In J. Tuner, D. Healy, R. Hillis, & M. Welch (Eds.), Proceedings of the Meeting on Geomechanics and Geology: The Geology of Geomechanics, as published in Geological Society Special Publications Vol. 458 (pp. 49-88). Bath, UK: The Geological Society.
Scopus5 WoS22016 Meeuws, F., Reynolds, P., Holford, S., Foden, J., & Schofield, N. (2016). Characterising Extrusive and Intrusive Magmatism at the Kipper Field, Gippsland Basin, Using 3D Seismic Data. In ASEG Extended Abstracts Vol. 2016 (pp. 1).
2015 Bailey, A., King, R., Holford, S., & Sage, J. (2015). Variation of natural fracture orientations in the Carnarvon Basin's Rankin Platform and Dampier Sub-Basin. In ASEG Extended Abstracts Vol. 2015 (pp. 1). online: CSIRO.
2015 Meeuws, F., Holford, S., & Foden, J. (2015). Geophysical and geochemical constraints on Cretaceous-Cenozoic magmatism along the southern Australian margin. In ASEG Extended Abstracts Vol. 2015 (pp. 1). online: CSIRO.
2015 Robson, A., King, R., & Holford, S. (2015). 3D seismic analysis of fault growth and interaction within a gravitational detachment delta system in the Ceduna Sub-Basin, Great Australian Bight. In ASEG Extended Abstracts Vol. 2015 (pp. 1-4). online: CSIRO.
2014 Mildren, S., Nicolson, R., Holford, S., & Titus, L. (2014). Improved reservoir models utilising image log data for a multidisciplinary workflow. In EAGE Borehole Geology Workshop: Optimising the Use of Your Borehole Image Data.
2013 Mildren, S., Clark, R., Holford, S., & Titus, L. (2013). Characterisation of fracture permeability at Cow Lagoon-1, McArthur Basin, Northern Territory, Australia and recommendations for development of the greater Cow Lagoon structure. In Society of Petroleum Engineers - Asia Pacific Unconventional Resources Conference and Exhibition 2013: Delivering Abundant Energy for a Sustainable Future Vol. 2 (pp. 862-872).
Scopus12013 Schofield, N., Magee, C., Holford, S., & Jackson, C. (2013). Magma plumbing and emplacement mechanisms within sedimentary basins. In Abstracts of European Geosciences Union General Assembly, as published in Geophysical Research Abstracts Vol. 15 (pp. 1). Online: European Geosciences Union. 2013 Holford, S., Schofield, N., Jackson, C., Magee, C., Green, P., & Duddy, I. (2013). Impacts of Igneous Intrusions on Source and Reservoir Potential in Prospective Sedimentary Basins Along the Western Australian Continental Margin. In M. Keep, & S. Moss (Eds.), West Australian Basins Symposium 2013 proceedings: WABS 2013, 18-21 August 2013, Perth Convention Centre, Western Australia (pp. 1-12). Australia. 2013 Mildren, S., Clark, R., Holford, S., & Titus, L. (2013). Characterisation of fracture permeability at Cow Lagoon-1, McArthur Basin, Northern Territory, Australia and recommendatioins for development of the Greater Cow Lagoon Structure. In SPE- Society of Petroleum Engineers, Unconventional Resources Conference and Exhibition-Asia Pacific (pp. 1-11). Australia: SPE- Society of Petroleum Engineers. 2013 Bailey, A., King, R., Holford, S., & Hand, M. (2013). Remote sensing of subsurface fractures in the Otway Basin, South Australia. In Geophysical Research Abstracts Vol, 15 (pp. 1 page). Online: European Geosciences Union. 2012 MacDonald, J., Holford, S., & King, R. (2012). Structure and Prospectivity of the Ceduna Delta--Deep-Water Fold-Thrust Belt Systems, Bight Basin, Australia. In N. Rosen, P. Weimer, S. Coutes dos Anjos, & et al. (Eds.), Proceedings of the 32 Annual GCSSEPM: New Understanding of the Petroleum Systems of Continental Margins of the World (pp. 779-816). CD-Rom: GCSSEPM.
2012 Abul Khair, H., Cooke, D., Backe, G., King, R., Hand, M., Tingay, M., & Holford, S. (2012). Subsurface mapping of natural fracture networks; A major challenge to be solved. Case study from the shale intervals in the Cooper Basin, South Australia. In Proceedings of the Thirty-Seventh Workshop on Geothermal Reservoir Engineering (pp. 1085-1092). USA: Stanford Geothermal Program. 2011 Tassone, D., Holford, S., Stoker, M., Underhill, J., Green, P., & Hillis, R. (2011). Late Cretaceous-cenozoic exhumation of the Faroe-Shetland basins along the NW Atlantic margin. In Society of Petroleum Engineers - 73rd European Association of Geoscientists and Engineers Conference and Exhibition 2011 - Incorporating SPE EUROPEC 2011 Vol. 7 (pp. 5260-5264). USB: EAGE. 2011 King, R., Abul Khair, H., Bailey, A., Backe, G., Holford, S., & Hand, M. (2011). Integration of In-Situ Stress Analysis and Three-Dimensional Seismic Mapping to Understand Fracture Networks in Australian Basins. In Proceedings of the Australian Geothermal Energy Conference 2011 (pp. 129-134). Melbourne. 2010 Tassone, D., Holford, S., & Hillis, R. (2010). Quantification of Cretaceous-Cenozoic exhumation in the Otway Basin using sonic velocities and implications for hydrocarbon exploration. In Proceedings of 21st International geophysical conference and exhibition (pp. 1-4). CD: ASEG.
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Conference Items
Year Citation 2018 McCabe, P., Holford, S., Huber, B., Hobbs, R., Bogus, K., & Wainman, C. C. (2018). Sedimentological and palynological investigations from Mesozoic strata of the Bight and Mentelle Basins, Australia: Preliminary results from IODP Expedition 369.. Poster session presented at the meeting of Australian Geoscience Council Convention. Adelaide, Australia. 2016 Collins, A. S., Acott, J., Lloyd, J., Payne, J., Glorie, S. M., Holford, S., . . . Jourdan, F. (2016). U-Pb and Hf Zircon Data Sources the New Zealand Torlesse and the Ceduna SubBasin Sediment Origin to Queensland, Indicating Widespread Mesozoic Erosion and Sediment Distribution. Poster session presented at the meeting of AESC 2016.
Current research projects are funded and supported by the ARC, ARENA, IODP, ASEG Research Foundation, Geological Survey of South Australia, IMER and Chevron.
I coordinate the following courses: PETROENG1005, PETROGEO4013, PETROGEO7013, PETROGEO7020
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Current Higher Degree by Research Supervision (University of Adelaide)
Date Role Research Topic Program Degree Type Student Load Student Name 2019 Principal Supervisor Post-breakup Evolution of the Ceduna Sub-basin and Understanding of Processes that Occur on Rifted Continental Margins Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Mrs Monica Jimenez Lloreda 2018 Principal Supervisor Magmatism and Petroleum Systems in the North West Shelf Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Mr Michael Shaun Curtis 2017 Principal Supervisor Improving the Accuracy of Geomechanical Predictions Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Mr Matthew Mark Musolino -
Past Higher Degree by Research Supervision (University of Adelaide)
Date Role Research Topic Program Degree Type Student Load Student Name 2018 - 2018 Co-Supervisor Neotectonic faults of the Paralana Escarpment and their influence on uranium-bearing fluid flow Master of Philosophy Master Full Time Mr Jonathan David Donauer Berthiaume 2017 - 2019 Principal Supervisor Analysing Ancient Focused Fluid Flow Systems in Offshore Sedimentary Basins of Australia Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Mr Tayallen Velayatham 2016 - 2019 Principal Supervisor Characterising the structural, petrophysical, and geochemical properties of inverted fault zones Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Miss Natalie Debenham 2016 - 2019 Co-Supervisor A Multiscale Approach towards the Characterisation of Upper Crustal Deformation at Passive Continental Margins: A Case Study on the Otway Basin, Australia Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Hugo Bonython Burgin 2015 - 2019 Co-Supervisor Structural Evolution of Deformation Bands Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Mr Drew Christopher Lubiniecki 2014 - 2018 Co-Supervisor Normal fault growth analysis using 3D seismic datasets located along Australia’s southern margin Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Part Time Alexander George Robson 2013 - 2018 Principal Supervisor An evaluation of petroleum systems within the Billiluna Sub-basin and adjacent structural regions, Northeastern Canning Basin Master of Philosophy Master Part Time Mr Peter James Hawke 2013 - 2019 Co-Supervisor Meso-Cenozoic intraplate magmatism along the Australian southern margin Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Dr Fun Julie Ellen Meeuws 2013 - 2016 Co-Supervisor The resistivity and permeability of fractured rocks Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Mrs Alison Louise Kirkby 2012 - 2016 Co-Supervisor Structural Permeability in Australian Sedimentary Basins Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Adam Henry Edward Bailey 2009 - 2013 Co-Supervisor Origin and Structure of the Ceduna Delta System, Offshore South Australia Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Mr Justin MacDonald 2009 - 2014 Principal Supervisor Compressional Deformation and Exhumation in Sedimentary Basins at 'Passive' Continental Margins, with implications for Hydrocarbon Exploration and Development Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Mr David Tassone
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Board Memberships
Date Role Board name Institution name Country 2015 - ongoing — Petroleum Exploration Society of Australia — — -
Committee Memberships
Date Role Committee Institution Country 2015 - ongoing President Petroleum Exploration Society of Australia SA/NT Branch — — 2012 - ongoing Member Geological Society of Australia SA Division — — -
Memberships
Date Role Membership Country 2010 - ongoing — Geological Society of Australia — 2008 - ongoing — AAPG — 2008 - ongoing — PESA — 2001 - ongoing Member Geological Society of London —
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