Organic matter characteristics and conventional oil potentials of shales from the Early Jurassic Datta Formation in the Upper Indus Basin, Northern Pakistan

•Datta shales contain mixed organic matter of planktonic/bacterial and land plant inputs.•The organic facies is predominantly of Types II and II/III, with Type III kerogens.•The Datta shales are both oil- and gas-prone source rocks.•There is a genetic link between extracted Datta shales and the oils from the Chanda Oilfield.