Wide spread expirations in third quarter

Companies across the state lose acreage as leases reach the end of their primary terms; Eni drops two leases from Nikaitchuq unit

Eric Lidji

For Petroleum News

Anadarko Petroleum Corp. lost five leases in September to expiration.

The leases — ADL 391186, ADL 391187, ADL 391188, ADL 391189 and ADL 391202 — were all on the eastern North Slope, surrounding the former Jacob’s Ladder unit.

Anadarko picked up the prospect over three lease sales during the late 1990s and early 2000s, and brought BG Group and Arctic Slope Regional Corp. on board as partners.

Indications of unique geology in the region led to hopes of a new type of prospect on the North Slope, one capable of containing hundreds of millions of barrels of oil equivalent.

The partners spent more than $30 million over two seasons exploring the prospect.

Anadarko began drilling Jacob’s Ladder C in early 2007, but suspended the well because of seasonal drilling restrictions. The following winter, Anadarko re-entered the well as a sidetrack, but subsequently determined the well found “no commercial hydrocarbons.”

Anadarko terminated the unit in late 2008 and its surrounding leases gradually expired over the following years. The current expirations were Anadarko’s last in the region.

Mobil previously drilled the Kadler State 15-9-16 well on ADL 391202. Shell and Texaco drilled nearby in the late 1960s and early 1970s, without commercial discoveries.

AVCG, Conoco, Repsol

The leases — ADL 391203, ADL 391204, ADL 391205 and ADL 391921 — were all un-unitized leases adjacent to the southern border of the Tofkat unit, near Nuiqsut.

To the south, ConocoPhillips Alaska Inc. lost three leases in September the expiration.

The leases — ADL 391190, ADL 391191 and ADL 391192 — hug a bend in the Colville River. Anadarko Petroleum Corp. held a 22 percent interest in the three leases.

Repsol E&P USA Inc. lost three leases to expiration in September.

A pair of those leases — ADL 391181 and ADL 391184 — was in the White Hills region, in the central North Slope near the Meltwater satellite of the Kuparuk River unit.

Repsol drilled the Kachemach No. 1 well in the vicinity of the two expired leases this past winter. Texaco drilled the Wolfbutton 32-7-8 well on ADL 391181 in the winter of 1988-1989 and Chevron previously drilled the Ruby State No. 1 well on ADL 391184.

The third, ADL 391163, was a small coastal lease north of the Colville River unit.

Repsol held all three leases in partnership with the Armstrong subsidiary 70 &148 LLC.

Bachner, Armstrong

The offshore leases — ADL 391377 and ADL 391379 — were adjacent to the northern border of the Badami unit and included the ARCO W. Mikkelsen No. 2 well.

And William D. Armstrong transferred a 0.0625 percent royalty interest in some 160 leases scattered across the North Slope and Beaufort Sea areas to Edward S. Smida.

Point Thomson

The leases, ADL 47562 and ADL 47567, include the Exxon Pt. Thomson No. 2 well.

The recent Point Thomson settlement listed Two Four Six Exploration as an affiliate of United Oil & Minerals Limited Partnership. Unrelated court filings also list Aubris Resources LP as an affiliate of the same United Oil & Minerals Limited Partnership.

Nikaitchuq contraction

The leases — ADL 388579 and 389719 — were at the northeast corner of the near-shore unit, operated by Eni Petroleum. Neither lease had been the site of previous drilling.

In its most recent plan of development for Nikaitchuq, Eni agreed to contract the leases out of the unit because the leases could not be reached from either of the existing drilling pads at the unit, and because neither lease had been covered by previous seismic surveys.

Interior exploration

On the same license acreage: Cedar Creek transferred a 5 percent working interest to Doyon, Usibelli Energy LLC transferred a 10 percent working interest to Doyon, and Arctic Slope Regional Corp. transferred a 15 percent working interest to Doyon.

The companies are all partners on an exploration effort in the region.

Ramshorn Investments

Ramshorn also transferred a 0.39583 royalty interest in two leases — ADL 391825 and ADL 391827 — to Alaska Venture Capital Group. The leases are on the eastern North Slope in a region previously known by the names Greater Bullen, Slugger or Telemark.

Apache expirations, etc.

The leases were scattered across the massive leasehold it began acquiring in mid-2010.

On the east side of Cook Inlet, ADL 391086 was an onshore lease on the Kenai Peninsula between Sterling and Soldotna. A pair of nearby leases held by independent investor John M. Martineck — ADL 391088 and ADL 391089 — also expired, as did two neighboring leases held by Marathon Alaska Production Inc. — ADL 391084 and ADL 391085.

(Another Marathon lease — ADL 391555 — also expired in October. The lease was located to the southwest of the previous cluster, between Ninilchik and Clam Gulch.)

Continuing with Apache: ADL 391096 was to the northwest of the cluster, near Nikiski.

Across the basin, ADL 391100 was an offshore lease near the Kustatan facilities. ADL 391110 and ADL 391111 were just up the coast, near the mouth of the McArthur River.

ADL 391121 was an onshore-offshore lease covering the south half of the city of Anchorage. (Also in October, the other outstanding Anchorage-area lease expired. The lease, ADL 391120, was a non-contiguous lease held by Northern Future Energy Corp.)

ADL 391122 was a small isolated offshore lease between the Beluga River unit and the Northwest Cook Inlet unit. Meanwhile, ADL 391124, ADL 391125 and ADL 391127 were a cluster on onshore leases on the west side of Cook Inlet just west of the Lone Creek unit, and ADL 391126 is an onshore lease just to the northeast of that cluster.

ADL 391130 was an onshore lease along the Susitna River, at the northern boundary of the Cook Inlet lease sale boundary. It included the Inlet Oil Fish Creek No. 1 well.

Finally, ADL 391135 was a small offshore lease near Ninilchik.

Leasing odd and ends

Alaskan Energy Alliance Inc. lost one lease to expiration. ADL 391128 was an isolated onshore lease on the west side of Cook Inlet, just west of the Pretty Creek unit.

Also in October, the state committed part of two Nordaq Energy Inc. leases — ADL 391103 and ADL 391104 — to the Tiger Eye unit. The un-unitized portion of ADL 391103 expired. The un-unitized portion of ADL 391104 became ADL 392260.

Finally, Paul L. Craig transferred a 50 percent working interest and 43.75 percent royalty interest in one lease to Peter G. Zamarello. ADL 391849 was offshore Trading Bay.

In September, Bruce D. Webb transferred a 0.5 percent royalty interest in 25 leases at Kitchen Lights, an offshore unit in the Cook Inlet basin, to Bailey M. Webb.

Colby Dowlin transferred a 0.5 percent royalty interest in four Cook Inlet leases — ADL 391091, ADL 391092, ADL 391094 and ADL 391095 — to Gregory E. Micallef.

—A copyrighted oil and gas lease map from Mapmakers Alaska was a research tool used in preparing this story.