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Delta systems are ubiquitous around lacustrine rift basins. Its peripheral geometry, progradation structures and sedimentary successions were controlled by both tectonic settings and climatic changes. Peripheral geometry of a delta was strongly influenced by depositional gradients which formed the fan-shape delta on the steep slopes and developed the lobe-shape delta on the gentle slopes. Due to the discharge feed rivers can change rapidly driven by climatic variations, and the nearshore area of deltas display considerable facies variability. The rise of annual rainfall, which suggests the rivers feeding deltas are continuous, and result in distributary mouth bars that are prevalent in the front of deltas since the down-slope flows are greater than the along-slope currents. On the contrary, when the annual rainfall decreases and evaporation increases, the rivers only can feed deltas ephemerally. If the along-slope currents were in a dominant position, the distal bars were deposited. Progradation structure and sedimentary successions of deltas were controlled by the gradients of slopes. On gentle depositional slopes, shingle foreset beds predominate with fine sediments and small-scale sedimentary structures or vice versa.

[Objective] As an important type of coarse-grained sedimentary system and oil and gas reservoir in faulted basins, fan delta and slump fan complex deposition has been the hot topic of research on lacustrine sedimentary and reservoir formation, such as distribution area, evolution period and accumulation model. [Methods] Based on high resolution 3D seismic and drilling and logging data in the A Sag of Melut Basin in central Africa region, the sedimentary characteristics and evolution of fan delta-slump fan complex are studied by using core observation, sequence division, seismic reflection characteristics and seismic attribute analysis. [Results and Conclusions] The results showed that the types of sedimentary facies of fan in the study area included fan delta and slump fan caused by gravity flow, slump fan had two types of morphology characteristic, the first one was line source slump fan controlled by slope break, the second one was multistage slump fan with single point source controlled by steep topographic slope. Combined with seismic profiles and well logging features, five periods of fans were recognized in the Cretaceous study section. The single-stage fan all had the characteristics of retrogradation, the vertical evolution of multiple periods of fans was characterized by "first progradation and later retrogradation" . The fan distribution was the largest at the end of Renk Formation deposition in the Lower Cretaceous, reaching 148 km². However, the fan evolution was mainly influenced by tectonic activity, palaeogeomorphology, provenance supply, and base-level cycle. The fan distribution was larger in the period of strong tectonic activity, abundant provenance supply and large short-axis tectonic uplift, and the slump fan was most developed in the early period of relative base-level rising cycle and decreasing cycle. A new understanding of the sedimentary pattern transformation occurred in the Early Cretaceous and Late Cretaceous in the A Sag was put forward. The exploration potential of the fan delta and slump fan complex deposition in the faulted depression is clarified, which guided the exploration deployment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]