Quarterly lease ownership rankings: The top 20

Largest holders of state oil and gas leases, ranked by acreage, from state’s quarterly report through the end of September 1999

Kristen Nelson

PNA News Editor

The state’s latest report on companies holding oil and gas lease acreage contains no surprises. ARCO Alaska Inc. and BP Exploration (Alaska) Inc. remain the state’s largest leaseholders according to the October report from the Alaska Department of Natural Resources Division of Oil and Gas.

Combined acreage of the two companies is more than 2 million acres, a number which includes both acreage in producing units and undeveloped exploration acreage.

The report reflects activity through the end of September. The state has 3.6 million acres under oil and gas lease, up 13.4 percent from September 1998, when the total was 3.2 million acres. The top 20 leaseholders hold 95.6 percent of the acreage.

Acreage increases from last year reflect the state’s first areawide North Slope and Cook Inlet lease sales. At the North Slope areawide sale in February the state sold 174,923 acres. At the Cook Inlet areawide sale in April the state sold 199,040 acres.