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Hilcorp transfer finalized State completes transfer of Unocal’s Cook Inlet assets to Houston independent; approves other leasing changes across Alaska Kristen Nelson & Eric Lidji For Petroleum News
Hilcorp Alaska LLC is officially a player in Cook Inlet.
The privately held Houston independent has closed on its acquisition of Union Oil Company of California’s Cook Inlet assets, and the Alaska Division of Oil and Gas has approved Hilcorp as unit operator for Deep Creek, Ivan River, Lewis River, Nikolaevsk, Pretty Creek, South Granite Point, South Middle Ground Shoal, Stump Lake and Trading Bay.
The division received notices of acceptance as successor unit operator from Hilcorp Dec. 28 and, by letters dated Dec. 29, authorized change of operator effective Jan. 1.
Marathon Alaska Production LLC also holds working interests in the Trading Bay unit and ExxonMobil Alaska Production holds working interests in the South Granite Point unit, the division said in Jan. 3 approvals of designation of successor unit operator.
The division said it received copies of letters from ExxonMobil Alaska and Marathon Alaska stating that they had no objection to Hilcorp as operator of those units.
In the other named Cook Inlet units Hilcorp holds all of the working interest.
The division also approved the transfer of lease ownership to Hilcorp, from Unocal.
Other leasing news In other leasing news, Marathon Alaska Production LLC allowed one offshore Cook Inlet lease to expire. The lease — ADL 391554 — is contiguous to the Ninilchik unit.
Cook Inlet Energy Inc. transferred a 50 percent working interest and 43.25 percent royalty interest in one Cook Inlet lease to Unocal (who in turn transferred it to Hilcorp).
Samuel Cade and Daniel Donkel transferred a combined 85 percent working interest and 3.8 percent royalty interest in one Cook Inlet lease to North Future Energy Corp. The lease — ADL 391120 — is the smaller of two within the Municipality of Anchorage.
Nordaq Energy Inc. transferred small royalty interests in one west side Cook Inlet lease — ADL 391103 — to 11 independent investors in December: John Kidd, Williams de Broe Ltd., Cranberry Ventures LLC, Hugh North, Socarta LLC, Chawist LLC, Robert C. Warthen, Tiki Yates, Louis J. Jacober, Ilona Jean Hodson Farr 2005 Trust and Ilona Jean Hodson Farr Irrevocable Alaska Trust. The interests are all for less than 1.5 percent.
On the North Slope, Alaska Venture Capital Group allowed two leases to expire. The two un-unitized leases — ADL 390457 and ADL 390458 — are between the Kuparuk River unit and the Colville River. Anadarko US Offshore Corp. transferred a small working and royalty interest — all less than 6 percent — in three leases at the Milne Point unit — ADL 47433, ADL 47437 and ADL 47438 — to operator BP Exploration Alaska Inc.
NOTE: A copyrighted oil and gas lease map from Mapmakers Alaska (www.mapmakersalaska.com) was a research tool used in preparing this story.
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