DOG approves North Fork POD for 2026
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Field operator Hilcorp commits to drilling sidetrack well and grassroots well in 2026; anticipates enhanced gas production
Alan Bailey for Petroleum News
On Dec. 23 Alaska's Division of Oil and Gas approved Hilcorp Alaska's 2026 plan of development for the North Fork gas field in the southern Kenai Peninsula. In the plan Hilcorp commits to drill one sidetrack well and one grassroots well within the North Fork unit during the period of the plan, which runs from Jan. 1, 2026, to Dec. 31, 2026.
Hilcorp told DOG that the company also commits to maintaining and enhancing gas production from the unit and that facility work will be completed as needed.
Hilcorp had requested that the new POD should terminate on Aug. 1, 2026, to align the POD timeframe with Hilcorp's PODs for its other Cook Inlet units. However, the division declined this request, saying that aligning all PODs to the same timeframe would not provide the division with sufficient time to adequately conduct due diligence on each POD.
Formed in 1965 The unit was originally formed as a federal unit in 1965, with two federal leases and two state leases. In 2006 the Bureau of Land Management waived its administration rights, transferring its leases to the state. Currently the unit includes five state leases, covering a total area of 2,601 acres.
Several companies have operated the unit at various times. Hilcorp took over the unit from the previous operator Vision Operating LLC in 2024. While gas production from the field had been declining at a rate of about 3% per year, production has steadily increased since Hilcorp became operator -- between October 2024 and October 2025 production increased by more than 24%, the division wrote.
Mandatory contraction Under state regulations, after a unit has been in production for 10 years it has to be contracted to areas that are producing oil or gas. Given the various changes of field operator, there have been several changes to the stipulated mandatory contraction date. On Jan. 5 Hilcorp announced that, following a request to DOG, the agency has deferred the current contraction date from Dec. 31, 2025, to Oct. 1, 2027. The company said that it had told DOG that, pending the results of the planned drilling of a grassroots well and a sidetrack well, the company may drill an additional well outside the field's current producing gas pool.
Hilcorp has completed several well work activities, in particular opening up four new well perforations to access gas resources in the upper Tyonek gas reservoir. Two of the well modifications resulted in additional gas production. Also a technical study of the unit identified four new drilling opportunities, the division wrote in its plan of development approval.
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