An ARCO group will develop an oil field in the western Colville area of Alaska's North Slope, marking the slope's first major new field development in some years.
The Alpine field development project lies 34 miles west of the Kuparuk River oil field and 8 miles north of the village of Nuiqsut. It is the first North Slope oil discovery on native-owned mineral estate since passage of the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act in 1971.
Development cost is pegged at $700-800 million. Initial production of 30,000 b/d is expected in early 2000, increasing to 60,000 b/d in 2001.
A 2 year delineation program, which included six wells, four sidetracks, and a high-quality 3D seismic survey, indicates the 10 mile long, 40,000 acre oil field has proven and potential reserves of 250-300 million bbl of oil and 800 million-1 billion bbl of oil in place.
Partners are operator ARCO Alaska Inc. 56%; Anadarko Petroleum Corp. 22%; and Union Texas Petroleum Alaska Corp. 22%.
ARCO Alaska has proposed two drill sites and 100-150 wells covering 85 surface acres with a stand-alone processing complex. Four delineation wells were tested and flowed high-quality, 40° gravity oil, the companies said. An unstimulated rate of 2,380 b/d of oil was achieved from the Alpine formation, a sandstone discovered at a depth of about 6,850 ft.
ARCO said engineering design has begun for field development and pipeline construction.
A 3 mile gravel road connecting the two drill sites is planned. Ice roads, constructed during winter, will be used to move equipment and supplies. Sales-quality oil would move to market through an elevated, 34 mile, 16-20 in. pipeline that would connect Alpine to the Trans-Alaska Pipeline System via the Kuparuk River pipeline. ARCO submitted a pipeline right-of-way application to the state in mid-September.
Pending issuance of local, state, and federal permits, field construction and development would begin in winter 1997-98.
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