|
Minerals Management Service asks for nominations for Norton Sound, Chukchi Sea-Hope Basin Sales are tentatively set for 2004, but will be held only if there is industry interest Petroleum News Alaska
The Minerals Management Service is asking companies for expressions of interest in leasing in the Norton Basin and Chukchi Sea-Hope Basin. The agency said March 25 that separate calls for information and nominations for the outer continental shelf areas were published in the Federal Register, the first step in an 18-month process.
MMS Alaska Regional Director John Goll said, “The areas off Western Alaska, although largely unexplored, may contain substantial natural gas resources that could be used for local communities, as well as export.” Goll said “high economic costs of development due to the distance from any infrastructure make it a challenging area to lease. Our objective through the 'special interest' process is to encourage exploration in frontier OCS areas that might contain oil and gas for potential use in local communities as well as to meet national energy needs.” Norton primarily gas A Norton basin sale is tentatively scheduled for fall 2004, subject to interest. This area is offshore Alaska in Norton Sound and the northern Bering Sea, west and south of the Seward Peninsula, and covers some 25 million acres from three to approximately 320 miles offshore. Water depths range from 25 feet to 650 feet.
MMS estimates that conventionally recoverable natural gas may range from zero to 8.7 trillion cubic feet (mean 2.7 tcf). Estimates are small for oil — ranging from zero to 200 million barrels (mean less than 100 million barrels). The ranges reflect the 95 percent and 5 percent probabilities.
A Chukchi Sea-Hope Basin sale, tentatively scheduled for fall 2004 subject to industry interest, is offshore Alaska in the Chukchi Sea from Point Barrow south to Cape Krusenstern. The Chukchi Sea area covers about 34 million acres and extends from about 10 to 200 miles offshore. Water depths range from 32 feet to approximately 230 feet. A small portion of the northeast corner of the area slightly west of Point Barrow drops to a depth of approximately 3,000 feet. The Hope Basin portion of the call area covers about 6.5 million acres from three to 110 miles in water depths ranging from about 32 feet to 230 feet.
Conventionally recoverable resources in the Chukchi Sea range between 8.6 to 25 billion barrels of oil (mean 15.5 billion barrels), and 13.6 to 154 tcf of gas (mean 60.1 tcf). In Hope Basin, the estimates range between zero to 300 million barrels of oil (mean 100 million barrels) and 0 to 11.1 tcf of gas (mean 3.4 tcf). The ranges reflect the 95 percent and 5 percent probabilities. Specific area nominations requested MMS is requesting nominations of “small, very specific areas” where companies “are willing to commit to exploration.” MMS will use the information received to make the decision whether to proceed with leasing.
MMS said that for these frontier areas it “is considering offering economic incentives for this sale similar to the type offered recently in the Proposed Notice of Sale for Beaufort Sea Sale186.”
Nominations and comments must be received by June 23.
The agency said that if there is no industry interest in the sales this year, it will postpone the sales the reissue the calls next year, a process which would continue throughout the 2002-2007 five-year sale program until there is sufficient interest to hold a sale.
| 