Lease requested for part of Copper River exploration license area in Interior

Forest Oil has applied to the Alaska Department of Natural Resources to convert part of the state Copper River basin exploration license to a conventional oil and gas lease. Forest and Anschutz Exploration hold the exploration license 50-50.

“The (exploration) license expired on Sept. 30,” Pirtle Bates of Alaska’s Division of Oil and Gas told Petroleum News.

DNR received a request to convert 12 parcels amounting to about 47,500 acres to an oil and gas lease, Bates said. It’s in range 3 through 5 north and range 1 through 5 west, Copper River meridian, he said.

Under the terms of the exploration license the licensees can convert all or part of the license to a lease, provided that the license work commitments have been met. DNR has requested a title review for the parcels involved and has yet to verify completion of the license work commitments, Bates said. The lease acreage is in the general area of the Ahtna No. 119 well drilled recently near Glennallen, he said.

Rutter and Wilbanks, with partner Delphi International, drilled the Glennallen well. Forest and Anschutz also have an interest in the well.

Forest land manager Jim Arlington told Petroleum News that the conversion of the acreage is in response to the expiry of the exploration license at the end of September; the companies want to retain the possibility of further exploration in the area. Rutter and Wilbanks and Delphi International, who had farmed into the exploration license, recommended what acreage to convert, Arlington said.

The requested lease would be owned 50-50 by Forest and Anschutz, with Forest as the operator. The term of the license will be five years.

—Alan Bailey