Baltic Depression

Commentary

Development in the BDB remains sparse, and opposition to oil & gas in surrounding countries makes large-scale progress unlikely. Elevated security risk linked to Russia and Belarus adds to the headwinds. Outlook: Negative.

Updated

October 12, 2026

Location

Description

Petroleum generation from Cambrian, Ordovician, and Silurian source rocks began in the Late Silurian prior to the Devonian to Carboniferous Hercynian orogeny. Uplift and erosion during this orogeny removed at least 1,000m of lower Palaeozoic rocks and potentially affected the retention of hydrocarbons within the source/reservoir rock systems, which constitutes a major source of geologic uncertainty in the assessment.

Summary

The Baltic Depression Province is an area of approximately 232,410sq km, and exists partly offshore and includes onshore areas of the Baltic states, Poland, Russia (Kaliningrad) and Sweden.