THE EXPLORERS 2007: FEX puts NPR-A drilling on pause 11/18/2007
Independent remains committed, but concerned about land access, high costs, fiscal regime, postpones drilling for two years
FEX L.P.'s decision to put its Alaska drilling program on pause for two years came as a surprise to everyone except those paying attention to the federal government's cancellation of National Petroleu...

FEX puts NPR-A drilling on pause 10/21/2007
Independent remains committed, but concerned about land access, high costs, fiscal regime, postpones drilling for two years
FEX L.P.'s decision to put its Alaska drilling program on pause for two years came as a surprise to everyone except those paying attention to the federal government's cancellation of National Petroleu...

30 STRONG: Exploration rigs more mobile 10/14/2007
For many years large, powerful and heavy drilling rigs had been the norm for exploration drilling on Alaska's North Slope. With deep drilling targets in the traditional reservoir rocks associated with...

KUPARUK ANNIVERSARY: Two rigs drilling West Sak at 1J pad 01/21/2007
In 2004 ConocoPhillips and the other Kuparuk owners committed to expanding West Sak heavy oil production. Because of that commitment, Kuparuk River drill site 1J is the busiest in Alaska. ConocoPhilli...

North Slope exploration plans shaping up 10/22/2006
Six companies will drill at least 13 wells across northern Alaska; NPR-A programs impacted by court decision, 1998 stipulations
Companies gearing up to drill oil exploration wells on Alaska's North Slope during the upcoming winter drilling season are still filing permits, leaving the exact number of wells unknown. But it's saf...

FEX to drill 3 to 4 wells 08/06/2006
Talisman's FEX will use two drilling rigs for upcoming NPR-A exploration
Talisman subsidiary FEX is moving ahead with plans for continued exploration drilling in the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska this winter. "We will be drilling three to four wells this winter," Barry...

Alpine drilling sets records 07/30/2006
New technologies, teamwork, credited for successful development drilling
A consistent leadership team and cutting-edge technology have resulted in successful drilling at the ConocoPhillips Alaska-operated Alpine field. Chip Alvord, ConocoPhillips' Alpine drilling team lea...

Talisman reports on FEX's NPR-A drilling, plans for next winter 05/14/2006
Talisman Energy CEO Jim Buckee made one discovery as his company's subsidiary FEX drilled its first wildcat well in the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska over the winter. "It's damn cold up there," he...

Akita to build new Arctic rig 05/07/2006
Calgary-based Akita Drilling said April 27 that it's nearing completion of a $13.2 million drilling rig that has been custom designed for use in "northern applications." Akita is "engaged in contract...

Pipelines, drill sites, production facilities completed this winter at Alpine CD3, CD4 satellites 04/09/2006
Winter work completed this year at Alpine satellites Fiord and Nanuq included drilling at Fiord (CD3), a road-less drill site with drilling limited to winter, a ConocoPhillips Alaska spokeswoman told...

Arctic Fox exceeds expectations 03/12/2006
Pioneer Natural Resources Alaska is "very, very pleased" with the performance of the new Arctic Fox Rig No. 1 drilling rig, designed and built at its request by joint venture partners Doyon Drilling I...

Pioneer's Arctic Fox Rig No. 1 has arrived 12/25/2005
Independent permits three more Cronus exploration wells; major components for Doyon/Akita JV drilling rig arrive on North Slope
In anticipation of hitting pay at its North Slope Cronus exploration well this winter Pioneer Natural Resources filed applications in mid-December to drill three more wells in the newly formed Cronus...

Five's the likely number 12/04/2005
One major, two independents plan North Slope exploration wells this winter
Three oil companies are planning to drill a total of five exploration wells on Alaska's North Slope this winter, two of them wildcats and three closer to infrastructure. FEX, a subsidiary of Calgary-b...

THE EXPLORERS 2005: Pioneer still adding to Alaska prospects 11/31/2005
Independent having new rig special built for North Slope to drill more wells, cut exploration costs
Since Pioneer Natural Resources entered Alaska in 2002 to take the lead in Armstrong Alaska's Oooguruk project, the Texas-based independent has stacked up 1.6 million acres on the North Slope. This in...

Numerous wells under discussion but.... 10/02/2005
Pioneer, Talisman's FEX and maybe ConocoPhillips and Anadarko plan exploration drilling on Alaska's North Slope
Some call the upcoming drilling season the lull before the storm on Alaska's North Slope with expectations that Pioneer Natural Resources and Kerr-McGee will sanction their developments at Oooguruk an...

Cutting exploration costs 07/31/2005
Truckable rig will enable drilling of multiple wells in a single North Slope season
Ken Sheffield, president of Pioneer Natural Resources Alaska, told Petroleum News in July that the new Arctic Fox No. 1 rig under construction for his company's use will employ proven technology to cu...

Akita Drilling sets record profits in '04 04/03/2005
Akita Drilling, the leading contractor in Canada's north, posted record earnings of C$20.9 million in 2004 on sales of C$136 million, up from its 2003 profits of C$18.78 million on revenues of C$124.1...

Goal: more North Slope wells per season 03/27/2005
Pioneer Natural Resources drops out of Tuvaaq unit; says new drilling rig will be specially designed for North Slope exploration
The new rig Pioneer Natural Resources is having built for North Slope drilling will maximize the number of wells the company can drill in a winter season. Pioneer said March 21 that its Alaska subsid...

Akita, Doyon form JV; building rig for Pioneer work on North Slope 03/20/2005
Pioneer Natural Resources Alaska Inc., Doyon Drilling Inc. and Akita Drilling Ltd. have signed a four-year contract to build and operate a rig to perform exploratory drilling services on the North Slo...

Oil Patch Insider 02/13/2005
Enron sullies Lord Stanley; Alaska drillers set record with no lost time accidents in 2004
Was anything sacred with Enron? Apparently not, given fresh disclosures that the disgraced energy giant used Alberta as a testing ground in 1999 before allegedly manipulating the California electrici...

BP budgets some $1.5 billion for Alaska projects in 2005 12/05/2004
BP Exploration (Alaska)'s 2005 operating and management budget will be about the same as it was in 2004, some $800 million, but the company's capital budget will increase by $50 million, from $650 mil...

BP completes quad-lateral at Orion 10/31/2004
Drilling end of viscous equation appears solved; production of heavy oil still an issue because of sand produced with oil and well maintenance issues
The viscous oil resource on Alaska's North Slope - like the natural gas resource there - has been known for decades, but heavy oil has been as stranded as gas, stranded in the ground through lack of t...