[1] It extends from near Dondowa, North Luwu Regency, in the south, where it links to the WNW-ESE trending Matano Fault.
It continues northwards, heading offshore through the Gulf of Palu and passing to the west of the Minahassa Peninsula, before eventually linking with the North Sulawesi Subduction Zone.
Although it is a strike slip fault, there are locally normal and thrust features and segments.
[1][2][3] The fault is known to be highly active and several historical earthquakes are thought to have occurred on this zone, in 1905, 1907, 1909, 1927, 1934, 1968, 1985 and 1993.
That recurrence interval is insufficient to account for the long-term slip-rate, suggesting that either aseismic creep is important in this fault zone[3] or that other strands have been active, away from the main fault trace.