The tectonically quiescent Proterozoic (Texas craton) and Paleozoic (Gulf Coast) basement of Texas shows large contrasts in hydrogeological behavior, from being a fresh-water aquifer, where it crops out, to forming the base of several large sedimentary basins at depths >7 km (>23,000 ft).

The Permian Basin of Texas and New Mexico is an important petroleum province with a complex tectonic history. This region has been shaped by several divergent and convergent deformation events since the Proterozoic Eon. Each subsequent event was influenced by the accumulated tectonic fabric through fault reactivation and strain transfer.