Coquimbo Formation

Coquimbo Formation (Spanish: Formación Coquimbo) is a Miocene to Middle Pleistocene sedimentary formation located in Coquimbo Region in Norte Chico, Chile.

The lowermost unit belongs to the lower Miocene, with the third-deepest unit dated at 11.9 ± 1.0 Ma.

The uppermost unit of the formation is estimated at 1.2 Ma.

In the area of Tongoy, the Coquimbo Formation was deposited in an ancient bay that was formed in a graben or half-graben, with a normal fault dipping east.

Sea level changes during the Holocene have caused erosion to cut several marine terraces into the formation.