Parkini Formation
Late Miocene (Tortonian-Messinian; ~11.6-6.7 Ma)
Neogene in the time scale →Cited in 6 sources Last reviewed Jul 31, 2026
- Rank
- Not recorded
- Status
- Published
- Age
- Cenozoic · Neogene · Late MioceneLate Miocene (Tortonian-Messinian; ~11.6-6.7 Ma)
- Named by
- HSC (1961)
- Type locality
- Makran Flysch Province, Balochistan Basin
- Thickness
- 3030-4545 m
- Lithology
- Predominantly mudstone (sandy claystone); massive upper-Miocene slope mudstones blanketing the Panjgur fan complex.
- Synonyms
- Not recorded
A Miocene Makran slope mudstone — another candidate petroleum source rock, above the Panjgur sands.
Upper part of Makran accretionary sequence. Shallow marine to deltaic sediments marking shoaling.
Fossils
Contacts
Band colour = period; texture = dominant rock type. Lines between bands mark the contact type; dotted = no contact recorded in the sources (not a claim of conformity). True scale makes height ∝ recorded thickness; hatched = thickness not recorded. Ages approximate, for ordering.
This unit (highlighted) within its province column; faded ends continue above and below. Line style marks the contact type.
Distribution & setting
- Basin
- Not recorded
- Region
- Not recorded
- Depositional environment
- deep marine, slope
- Coordinates
- Not recorded
See it in the field
Geoheritage sites where this unit is exposed at outcrop.
Correlation
Not recorded. Compare this unit against other basins on the correlation panel →
Economic significance
A recognised potential hydrocarbon SOURCE ROCK of the Makran (slope-to-basinal mudstone, TOC locally exceeding 1%).
Remarks
A Miocene slope mudstone of the Makran accretionary wedge, deposited above the Panjgur turbidites as the prism shallowed; a candidate source rock of the Makran petroleum system.
Research notes (4)
Field-by-field findings drawn from the cited literature. Every statement is traced to a registered source — follow a citation for the full reference.
Name & nomenclature (1)
-
Attested in Shah (2009), Geological Survey of Pakistan Memoir 22, which describes it as the Parkini mudstone member, lower member of the Hinglaj Formation (adopted from Hunting Survey 1961; type section at Parkini Kaur). Adds the definitional GSP/SCP lexicon citation.
Shah, S.M.I. (2009)
Economic significance (1)
-
The upper Miocene Parkini Formation (up to ~3 km thick) is a slope-to-basinal calcareous mudstone that acts both as a potential source rock and as a top seal over the Panjgur turbidite reservoirs in the Makran petroleum system (Cromie et al. 2022).
Cromie, C., Scarselli, N., Craig, J., Khan, M.R. & Hussain, A. (2022)
Geological significance (2)
-
Kazmi & Jan (1997) RANK FLAG: the book treats this as the lower 'Parkini Mudstone Member' of the Hinglaj Formation (nodular dark-grey mudstone; Mio-Pliocene; a Makran slope deposit and hydrocarbon source rock), not a stand-alone formation.
Kazmi, A.H. & Jan, M.Q. (1997)
-
Kazmi & Abbasi (2008) REVISES the earlier (1997-based) rank flag: this newer book treats the Parkini as its own formation — the 'Parkini Formation' of HSC (1960), from Parkini Khaur (a tributary of the Hingol River) — an upper-Miocene slope mudstone that conformably overlies the Panjgur Formation and is transitionally overlain by the Talar Sandstone; it treats Hinglaj as a GROUP, not a formation. So the dataset's formation rank for Parkini is supported here, and the earlier 'Parkini Mudstone Member of the Hinglaj Formation' framing (Kazmi & Jan 1997) is superseded.
Kazmi, A.H. & Abbasi, I.A. (2008)
Sources (6)
- Malkani, M.S. & Mahmood, Z. (2017). Stratigraphy of Pakistan. Geological Survey of Pakistan, Memoir Vol. 24.
- Cromie, P. et al. (2022). Tectonostratigraphic Evolution and Hydrocarbon Prospectivity South of Gwadar Bay, Makran Accretionary Wedge, Offshore SW Pakistan. (petroleum-system study).
- Indian Plate Lexicon (indplex.geolex.org), Geological Society of India and international compilation.
- Shah, S.M.I. (2009). Stratigraphy of Pakistan. Geological Survey of Pakistan, Memoir Vol. 22.
- Kazmi, A.H. & Jan, M.Q. (1997). Geology and Tectonics of Pakistan. Graphic Publishers, Karachi.
- Kazmi, A.H. & Abbasi, I.A. (2008). Stratigraphy and Historical Geology of Pakistan. Department & National Centre of Excellence in Geology, University of Peshawar, Peshawar. 524 pp. ISBN 978-969-9119.
Reviewer confidence: high
Every fact on this page is source-cited. This entry is part of the peer-archived Pakistan Stratigraphy Dataset (doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.21363991, CC‑BY‑4.0).
Lexicon status: Name attested in the Shah (1977/2009) Geological Survey of Pakistan compilation — the national stratigraphic lexicon. This records where the name is documented; it is not an endorsement of the unit’s definition, age or figures.
Cite this unit
Qudsi, L. (2026). Parkini Formation. In Pakistan Stratigraphy Dataset [Data set]. Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.21363991
@misc{stratigraphypk_parkiniformation,
author = {Qudsi, Lareb},
title = {{Parkini Formation} --- Pakistan Stratigraphy Dataset},
year = {2026},
publisher = {Zenodo},
doi = {10.5281/zenodo.21363991},
url = {https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.21363991}
} Archived dataset: doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.21363991 (CC‑BY‑4.0) · Direct link to this entry: https://stratigraphy.pk/formation/parkini-formation (accessed October 29, 2026).
To cite the unit's original definition instead, see: HSC (1961).
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