There are layers rich in organic carbon, containing well-preserved type I kerogen, indicating anoxic depositional conditions. The parameters provided by the geochemical analyzes indicate significant differences between the outcrops under study, mainly regarding the quantity and the quality of the organic matter, thus configuring a difference in the conditions of production and preservation of the organic matter during the time of deposition of the shales. All samples were analyzed for total organic carbon (TOC), total sulfur, insoluble residue, Rock-Eval pyrolysis, whole oil chromatography, stable isotopes of oxygen, organic and inorganic carbon, saturated biomarkers and palynofacies, performed at the Center of Excellence in Geochemistry of the Institute of Geosciences of the Universidade Federal da Bahia (Lepetro), Brazil. For this, 23 samples of outcrops were collected near the cities of Santo Amaro, São Francisco do Conde and Simões Filho, State of Bahia, Brazil. The objective of this work was to evaluate the paleodepositional conditions and potential for the hydrocarbons generation of the outcropping shales in the Southern Compartment of the Recôncavo Basin, indicative of the Candeias and Maracangalha Formations (Lower Cretaceous), from the organic geochemical characterization and analysis of palinofacies. Universidade Federal da Bahia - Salvador (BA), Brazil. Universidade Estadual do Norte Fluminense Darcy Ribeiro - Rio de Janeiro (RJ), Brazil. E-mail: Hélio Jorge Portugal Severiano Ribeiro E-mails: Consuelo Lima Navarro de Andradeĭepartamento de Ciências Exatas (DEXA), Universidade Estadual de Feira de Santana - Bahia, Brazil.