The Producers provides an opportunity to consider the previous year and the upcoming year of oil and gas development across Alaska. As expected, some trends emerge.
The biggest trend this year was the arrival of smaller companies to the North Slope.
The small and privately held Caelus Energy LLC now operates the Oooguruk unit, succeeding the large and publically traded independent Pioneer Natural Resources Inc. The global super-major BP Exploration (Alaska) Inc. is selling much of its North Slope holdings - aside from its flagship Prudhoe Bay unit - to the large and privately held independent Hilcorp Alaska LLC. And the small and publically traded independent Miller Energy Resources Inc. is acquiring the small and privately held independent Savant Alaska Inc. in a deal that would make Miller the operator of the Badami unit.
Another trend is expansion.
Brooks Range Petroleum Corp. and several new partners expect to bring the Mustang field online in 2015. Exxon Mobil Corp. expects to bring the Point Thomson unit online in 2016. ConocoPhillips Alaska Inc. expects to bring the Greater Mooses Tooth unit online by late 2017. ConocoPhillips is also expanding development at its Kuparuk River and Colville River units. And Eni US Operating Co. Inc. has recently completed its initial drilling program at the Nikaitchuq unit and is evaluating several expansion plans.
The most stable presence on the North Slope was the North Slope Borough, which continues to reap benefits from its recent rejuvenation campaign of its three gas fields.
The biggest trend in Cook Inlet is consolidation.
With a few years of exploration and development work behind it, Hilcorp is now beginning to assert its dominance in the basin by securing short-term supply contracts, unifying four regional pipelines into a single system and merging units or facilities.
Having established its presence on the west side, Miller acquired the North Fork unit in the southern Kenai Peninsula from Armstrong Cook Inlet LLC. Miller is also in the running to acquire the Kenai Loop gas field in the northern Kenai Peninsula from Buccaneer Energy Ltd., which filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in late May 2014.
Aurora Gas, ConocoPhillips and XTO Energy Inc. were largely in holding patterns at the fields in 2014, although ConocoPhillips restarted the Kenai liquefied natural gas terminal, and Aurora is analyzing seismic data with the hope of drilling new wells at the Nicolai Creek unit.
Furie Operating Alaska LLC will become the newest Cook Inlet producer in 2015 when it brings Kitchen Lights online with the first offshore platform in the region since 2000.
