Alaska North Slope production stays steady in December

Kristen Nelson

Alaska North Slope crude oil production averaged 981,072 barrels per day in December, up less than a tenth of a percent from November’s average of 980,690 bpd. The Alaska Department of Revenue’s Tax Division reported that production at Endicott was disputed Dec. 5-7 by the cleanup of a glycol spill in a gas module, Northstar production dipped Dec. 21-22 when a compressor went down and overall North Slope production was prorated 50 percent Dec. 26 due to a remote gate valve closure at Pump Station 4 on the trans-Alaska pipeline. The volume dropped from 972,526 bpd Dec. 25 to 896,186 bpd Dec. 26, and returned to 986,469 bpd Dec. 27.

The BP Exploration (Alaska)-operated Endicott field had the largest drop in production, averaging 21,223 bpd in December, down 8.85 percent from an average of 23,284 bpd in November. BP-operated Lisburne averaged 46,239 bpd in December, down 0.3 percent from a November average of 46,393 bpd. Lisburne production includes Point McIntyre and Niakuk.

The ConocoPhillips Alaska-operated Alpine field averaged 115,847 bpd in December, down 0.3 percent from a November average of 116,197 bpd. The BP-operated Milne Point field averaged 52,438 bpd in December, almost flat with a November average of 52,442 bpd. Milne Point production includes Schrader Bluff heavy oil.

Production from the ConocoPhillips-operated Kuparuk River field averaged 198,179 bpd in December, up 0.2 percent from a November average of 197,767. Kuparuk production includes West Sak heavy oil, and satellite production from Tabasco, Tarn and Meltwater.

BP-operated Prudhoe Bay averaged 472,908 bpd in December, up 0.4 percent from a November average of 470,872. Prudhoe includes production from the field’s western satellites, Midnight Sun, Aurora, Polaris, Borealis and Orion.

BP-operated Northstar averaged 74,238 bpd, up 0.7 percent from a November average of 73,735 bpd.

Cook Inlet production averaged 22,763 bpd, up 1.3 percent from a November total of 22,467 bpd.

The North Slope temperature at Pump Station No. 1 averaged -7.1 degrees Fahrenheit in December, compared to a three-year temperature average of -3.9 degrees F; the November temperature averaged 2 degrees F.