Negotiations between state, BP Amoco to resume
The state will resume negotiations with BP Amoco later this week after the company notified Gov. Tony Knowles the evening of Nov. 2 that it had submitted written notification to the Federal Trade Commission to voluntarily suspend the federal 20-day review process. The federal timetable was triggered earlier this week when the company filed documents relating to the merger with the FTC.
The state said that in a BP Amoco letter to the FTC the evening of Nov. 2, the company agreed to provide the state and the FTC with 20 days notice before closing the transaction. BP Amoco also agreed not to start that final notice period until a final agreement had been reached between the company and the state, including the public review process sought by the governor; or the negotiations conclude without an agreement.
In its negotiations with the company, the state is seeking continued competition on the North Slope, including another major oil company with sufficient interests in production, exploration acreage, and transportation facilities to make it a viable competitor to BP Amoco. The state said substantial progress has been made in earlier negotiations.
"It's in everyone's interest that a satisfactory agreement is concluded soon so the state and industry can refocus their energies on producing oil and gas; and exploring for new deposits to keep Alaska's economy healthy and provide jobs for Alaska families," Knowles said the evening of Nov. 2.
Before any agreement is finalized, Knowles has called for a series of town hall meetings to seek public review and comment on the merger terms.
Anadarko, Kuukpik/Fairweather plan seismic
The state has received applications for North Slope winter seismic programs from Kuukpik/Fairweather Geophysical LLC and Western Geophysical Co.
The Kuukpik/Fairweather plan does not name the client. The company plans three programs from the Sag River to Harrison Bay, onshore and near shore between the trans-Alaska pipeline and Teshekpuk Lake in the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska. Both 2-D and 3-D will be shot, as much as 1,800 square miles.
The Western Geophysical program, being shot for Anadarko Petroleum Corp., involves two crews, with an estimated 400 to 1,000 square miles per crew. The area is onshore between NPR-A and the trans-Alaska pipeline and extends south well beyond present production but within the area of the state’s North Slope areawide sale.
MMS holds Alaska Arctic pipeline workshop
The Minerals Management Service is sponsoring an Alaskan Arctic Pipeline Workshop Nov. 8 and 9 to exchange technical information on Alaska Arctic offshore pipelines. The workshop is at the Captain Cook Hotel in Anchorage Nov. 8-9 with registration beginning at 8 a.m. on both days.
The workshop will bring together experts with skills in offshore pipeline design, operation, maintenance, and inspection to examine the current state of practice for Arctic pipeline alternatives under consideration for Alaska's offshore oil and gas reserves.
For more information, please contact Dr. Ryan Phillips via email at [email protected]. The meeting agenda is on the MMS Alaska web site at www.mms.gov/alaska.
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