Alaska falls into new ventures category

By Petroleum News • Alaska

Falling into the category of what AEC describes as “new ventures exploration” is the company’s foothold in both Alaska and Canada’s Mackenzie Delta, where pipeline decisions are pivotal in setting the course of exploration and development.

The final pieces are almost in place for drilling the McCovey and Grizzly Gomo prospects this year, said a spokesman for AEC, the parent company of AEC Oil & Gas (USA) Inc.

The partnership of AEC, Phillips Alaska Inc. and Chevron U.S.A. Inc. is awaiting permits to spud a $10 million wildcat well in the North Slope Grizzly prospect in mid-February, while permitting and consultations are under way with hopes of starting an exploration well at the Beaufort Sea McCovey prospect before year’s end, he said.

Having dropped the idea of building an ice island at McCovey, 15 miles north of the Prudhoe Bay oilfield, the spokesman said the plan is to have a drilling barge on site in August and allow it to “go quiet” until after the whaling season. Drilling is expected to start Nov. 15 and, depending on results, two wells could be drilled at McCovey and another “one or two” could be drilled at Grizzly, he said.

Seismic on ASRC lands

It shares one-third interests with Phillips and Chevron in the McCovey prospect, which consists of seven leases totaling 28,504 acres. Under the terms of the Grizzly Gomo deal it can earn a 20 percent interest in 114,262 acres.

AEC’s third interest in Alaska stems from a land swap in 2000 with Anadarko Petroleum Corp., under which AEC gained a one-third interest in 3 million gross acres of Arctic Slope Regional Corp. lands in the Alaska foothills.

The AEC spokesman said seismic is under way on that prospect, with no further timetable of activities established at this point.

But he said AEC views Alaska, as well as the Northwest Territories, as an opportunity for “strong, long-term production. They are all exploration endeavors, so they are long-term by nature.”