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Work could begin at Alpine satellites next winter Corps has received ConocoPhillips Alaska application for development of five new satellites, two in Colville River Delta, three in NPR-A Kristen Nelson Petroleum News Editor-in-Chief
The next five winters will be busy ones on the North Slope if work goes ahead according to a proposed schedule for development of five Alpine satellites.
Alpine satellite work would begin next winter at Fiord and Nanuq, north and south of existing Alpine facilities, with production possible from those satellites as early as 2006, ConocoPhillips Alaska Inc. told the Corps of Engineers in applications for its proposed satellites in the Colville River Delta and the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska. The Corps published the application April 9; comments are due by May 10.
Bridge piers for the 1,200-foot Nigliq River bridge would be installed in the winter of 2007, as would gravel at Lookout in NPR-A; bridge installation and gravel laying at Alpine West and Spark in NPR-A would occur in the winter of 2009.
The Corps said the project will require placement of almost 2 million cubic yards of gravel fill material in some 294 acres of U.S. waters, including wetlands.
The Alpine field is being developed from Colville Delta pads 1 and 2, CD-1 and CD-2.
The proposed project, with a final environmental impact statement expected in July, includes five drill pads; a 3.6-mile access road from CD-2 to proposed CD-4; a 22-mile NPR-A access road from existing CD-2 on the east side of the Nigliq Channel to proposed CD-7; access roads from CD-5 and CD-6 to the NPR-A access road; an airstrip, floating boat dock and dock access road at CD-3; and a boat ramp and boat dock access road at CD-4. The NPR-A access road would include a 1,200-foot bridge over the Nigliq Channel of the Colville River, a 120-foot bridge over the Ublutuoch River, an 80-foot bridge, four 40-foot bridges and four culvert batteries.
There would be a new 65-acre gravel mine at the Clover exploration site and ConocoPhillips would also use the previously permitted Arctic Slope Regional Corp. gravel mine, with an expected 27-acre impact. Fiord would be reached by air CD-3, formerly called CD-North and Fiord, is within the Colville Delta some five miles north of the existing Alpine Central Processing Facility, CD-1. Work at CD-3 would include a 13-acre drill pad, airstrip, access road from the airstrip to the pad, a floating boat launch and an access road to the boat launch. Facilities would include an emergency generator, warm and cold storage buildings and an emergency living quarters module.
The 3,670-foot airstrip would accommodate fixed-wing aircraft (Casa and Otter) or helicopter.
A 5.8-mile pipeline would be built on new vertical support members to the Alpine Central Processing Facility, with three pipeline-only bridges. Up to 32 wells would be drilled from the CD-3 gravel pad with drilling occurring only in the winter “to avoid impacts to wildlife and subsistence activities during summer months,” the Corps said. A drilling rig would be brought in by ice road each winter; the ice road would also provide access for emergency relief well purposes. Five to seven winter drilling seasons would be required to complete CD-3 development drilling.
Work at this satellite, and CD-4 (formerly called CD-South and Nanuq) would begin with gravel laying in the winter of 2005, drilling at CD-3, installation of vertical support modules and module piles. Pipeline bridge foundations to CD-3 would also be installed in the winter of 2005. In the winter of 2006, drilling would continue, and pipelines and power lines would be installed, along with construction of pipeline bridges, installation of surface facilities and modules. Production would begin in the summer of 2006. Nanuq a short drive from existing Alpine facilities CD-4, or Nanuq, is some four miles south of the Alpine and facilities would include a nine-acre drill pad, an access road to CD-1 and a boat ramp with access road. The 3.6-mile gravel road to the Alpine Central Processing Facility, CD-1, follows a naturally occurring ridge for about 80 percent of the route, with the remaining 20 percent on discontinuous sections of the ridge. A 22-foot wide by 130-foot long concrete boat launch would provide water access.
CD-4 development would consist of up to 32 wells, drilled in the summer, and most likely using the rig drilling at CD-3 in the winter.
Work would begin in the winter of 2005 with laying of gravel for the drill site, installing vertical support members and module piles and installation of pipelines and power lines. Drilling would begin in the summer of 2006, followed by production startup. Lookout first NPR-A development CD-6, Lookout, is some 15 miles southwest of CD-1 at Alpine. Work would begin with gravel placement for the 0.4-mile spur road to the NPR-A access road and a nine-acre drill site in the winter of 2007. CD-6 would include on-site power generation and a backup generator. Vertical support members and the pipelines would also be installed that winter, along with module piles; drilling would begin in the winter of 2008, with production startup that summer.Alpine West, Spark development last Development at CD-5, Alpine West, would include a nine-acre drill pad and a 0.1-mile spur road to the NPR-A access road. CD-5, some six miles southwest of CD-1, is outside of the Colville River Delta. Construction would begin in the winter of 2009 with gravel placement for road and pad, installation of vertical support members for pipelines and installation of module piles; pipelines and power lines would also be installed. Drilling at CD-5 would begin in the winter of 2010, with production startup that summer.
Development would occur in the same timeframe at CD-7, Spark, some 20 miles southwest of CD-1 at Alpine. Gravel placement for pad and a spur road to CD-6 would occur in the winter of 2009, with installation of pipelines and power lines, and the beginning of drilling, in winter 2010. Production startup would be that summer. 22-mile road into NPR-A The 22-mile NPR-A access road would provide access to CD-5, CD-6 and CD-7, beginning on the east side of the Nigliq Channel at CD-2 and ending at CD-7, with spur roads to CD-5 and CD-6. The road includes a 1,200-foot bridge over the Nigliq Channel, an 80-foot bridge crossing a system of small lakes west of the Nigliq Channel bridge, a 120-foot Ublutuoch River bridge, four 40-foot bridges along the NPR-A access road, four culvert batteries and additional road culverts.
Bridge piers at the Nigliq Channel would be installed in the winter of 2007, as would bridge foundations at the Ublutuoch River. The bridges would be constructed in the winter of 2009, and gravel would be placed for roads.
Gravel from the Arctic Slope Regional Corp. gravel mine would be used for CD-3 and CD-4. The Clover gravel mine would be used for CD-5, CD-6, CD-7 and roads.
The Corps said that ConocoPhillips “is drilling additional borings this winter 2004” to complete delineation of the Clover gravel mine, and is also preparing a mining and reclamation plan.
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