Abstract
Carbon Capture, Utilization, and Storage (CCUS) is globally recognized as a key strategy to mitigate the greenhouse gas emissions and address the climate change. Geological storage in oil and gas fields and saline aquifers offers a promising long-term solution, with growing research focusing on modeling, monitoring, and optimizing the storage performance. This study contributes to Kazakhstan’s national CCUS initiative by presenting the methodology and outcomes of constructing a conceptual geological and hydrodynamic model of the Zaisan sedimentary basin located in East Kazakhstan. By integrating structural, lithological, and petrophysical data from 23 wells, a high-resolution 3D geological framework was developed. This model successfully identified a structurally isolated zone within the Sarybulak field that exhibits highly favorable characteristics for the CO2 storage, including minimal faulting, adequate reservoir thickness, high porosity, and high-water saturation. These features collectively highlight that the Sarybulak field is a highly promising candidate for Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) deployment and reinforce the potential of the Zaisan basin as a strategic site for future large-scale carbon storage operations in Kazakhstan.