Preliminary Structural Interpretation of a Seismic Profile across the Frontal Sector of the Eastern Achara-Trialeti Fold-and-Thrust Belt

This paper presents a new structural model for the frontal part of the eastern Achara-Trialeti fold- and-thrust belt based on the interpretation of a seismic reflection profile across the retro-wedge of the Lesser Caucasus orogen. The structural details from the interpreted seismic reflection profile provide new data on the deep structure of the frontal part of the eastern Achara-Trialeti fold-and- thrust belt. The seismic reflection profile crosses, from south to north, the Varketili anticline, the Ormoiani syncline, and a south-directed imbricate thrust system. Seismic interpretation is constrained by surface geology, exploration wells, and application of theoretical models on fault- related folding. Seismic reflection data interpretation reveals the interaction between south- and north-vergent fold-thrust structures and north-vergent duplexes at depth. The duplexes are well imaged on the seismic profile and constituted by a lower and an upper duplex system. The lower duplex involves the Cretaceous-Middle Eocene sequence, whereas the upper duplex affects the Upper Eocene strata.