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The Explorers 2009: Marathon Oil
Marathon’s history in Alaska is intertwined with the history of the Cook Inlet basin. The Houston-based company arrived in Alaska in 1954 as the Ohio Oil Co., helped discover the Kenai gas field and began supplying Anchorage in 1961, a relationship that continues today. In 1969, the company partnered with what is now ConocoPhillips to build the first liquefied natural gas export facility in the country to ship Cook Inlet natural gas supplies to Asia. In 1996, Marathon sold its oil properties in Alaska to focus on natural gas.
Today, the company produces some 140 million cubic feet per day and operates seven fields in the basin: Beaver Creek, Kenai, Cannery Loop, Ninilchik, Sterling, West Fork and Wolf Lake. It also gets production from the Chevron-operated McArthur River unit. The company also owns several pipelines in the area. In 2008, Marathon drilled nine wells — including five required by the state for backing of an LNG export license extension — mostly dedicated to field development at Kenai and Ninilchik. Company officials predicted a 40 to 60 percent drop in drilling in 2009.
For several years, the company has considered drilling the Sunrise prospect on Cook Inlet Region Inc. land inside the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge on the northern end of the Kenai Peninsula.
Current exploration focus Cook Inlet: doing development drilling in Cook Inlet gas fields. Planning to drill at its Sunrise prospect in the northern Kenai Peninsula
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