Bristol Bay license not executed; April the month to apply for Alaska exploration licenses

Pat Galvin, petroleum land manager for the Division of Oil and Gas, said applicant Bristol Shores LLC has not executed its Bristol Bay basin exploration license, so the acreage is open for other license applications. In a March 16 interview with Petroleum News, Galvin also noted that April is the only month the Alaska Department of Natural Resources accepts exploration license applications.

Bristol Shores had a specified amount of time to give the state “an executed license (sign the license form); pay a fee of $1 per acre, which is just over $329,000; and give us a bond to secure the first year of a work commitment,” Galvin said in December. Bristol Shores’ total work commitment was $3.2 million work for the seven-year license.

The state issues exploration licenses rather than conventional leases for state lands that are not part of a proven oil and gas province with the intention of providing low-cost access for lands where the exploration risk is high.

Galvin can be reached at (907) 269-8775 or [email protected]

—Kay Cashman