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Providing coverage of Alaska and northern Canada's oil and gas industry
June 2019

Vol. 24, No.23 Week of June 09, 2019

April ANS production down 1% from March

Largest month-over-month volume drop at Kuparuk; largest month-over-month volume increase at Milne; Cook Inlet production flat

Kristen Nelson

Petroleum News

Alaska North Slope crude oil and natural gas liquids production averaged 515,292 barrels per day in April, down 1.4%, 7,042 bpd, from a March average of 522,334 bpd. Crude averaged 460,075 bpd; NGLs averaged 55,216 bpd.

ANS production for April was down 3.6% from April 2018, when it averaged 534,415 bpd, 482,018 bpd of crude oil and 52,396 bpd of NGLs.

Production data reported here is from the Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission, which provides volumes by field and well on a month-delay basis. NGLs are shown for fields where they are produced - Prudhoe Bay, Endicott and Northstar.

The largest month-over-month increase, both in barrels and in percentage, was at the Hilcorp Alaska-operated Milne Point field, which averaged 25,260 bpd in April, up 10.3%, 2,350 bpd, from a March average of 22,910 and up 17.7% from an April 2018 average of 21,457 bpd. Production at the Slope’s newest pad, Milne Point’s Moose Pad, came online in early April, with Hilcorp reporting an initial rate of 3,000 bpd from two wells.

Other North Slope fields with month-over-month production increases include Endicott, Nikaitchuq and Northstar.

Production at the Hilcorp-operated Endicott field increased marginally, averaging 7,328 bpd (6,443 bpd of crude and 885 bpd of NGLs), up 0.2%, 15 bpd, from a March average of 7,313 bod (6,443 bpd of crude and 870 bpd of NGLs). The field was also up year-over-year, an increase of 11.1% from an April 2018 average of 6,594 bpd (5,979 bpd of crude and 615 bpd of NGLs).

Eni’s Nikaitchuq field averaged 16,877 bpd in April, up 2.1%, 350 bpd, from an April average of 16,527 bpd, but down 5.5% from an April 2018 average of 17,853 bpd.

The Hilcorp-operated Northstar field averaged 11,373 bpd in April (8,510 bpd of crude and 2,863 bpd of NGLs), up 2.2%, 239 bpd, from a March average of 11,133 bpd (8,200 bpd of crude and 2,933 bpd of NGLs), but down 1.1% from an April 2018 average of 11,493 bpd (8,770 bpd of crude and 2,723 bpd of NGLs).

Down month-over-month

All other North Slope fields had month-over-month production declines.

The BP Exploration (Alaska)-operated Prudhoe Bay field, the Slope’s largest, averaged 272,748 bpd in April (221,280 bpd of crude and 51,469 bpd of NGLs), down 0.4%, 1,018 bpd, from a March average of 273,766 bpd (220,977 bpd of crude and 52,789 bpd of NGLs) and down 5.4% from an April 2018 average of 288,362 bpd (239,304 bpd of crude and 49,058 bpd of NGLs).

In addition to the primary reservoir, production volumes from Prudhoe include Aurora, Borealis, Lisburne, Midnight Sun, Niakuk, Polaris, Point McIntyre, Put River, Raven and Schrader Bluff.

The month-over-month decline was small at ConocoPhillips Alaska’s Greater Mooses Tooth, which averaged 12,253 bpd in April, down 0.5%, 57 bpd, from a March average of 12,310 bpd. Greater Mooses Tooth, which is in the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska, came online in October and is producing from three wells.

ConocoPhillips’ Colville River unit averaged 52,661 bpd in April, down 2.7%, 1,482 bpd, from a March average of 54,142 bpd, and down 20.2% from an April 2018 average of 66,001 bpd.

In addition to oil from the main Alpine pool, Colville production includes satellite production from Fiord, Nanuq and Qannik.

The ConocoPhillips-operated Kuparuk River field averaged 100,342 bpd in April, down 4.3%, 4,488 bpd, from an April average of 104,830, and down 9.1% from an April 2018 average of 110,323 bpd.

In addition to the main Kuparuk pool, Kuparuk produces from satellites at Meltwater, Tabasco and Tarn, and from West Sak.

Badami, operated by Glacier Oil & Gas subsidiary Savant Alaska, averaged 1,659 bpd in April, down 8.7%, 158 bpd, from a March average of 1,817 bpd, but up 137.7% from an April 2018 average of 698 bpd. Badami production increased beginning in May of 2018, when Savant brought the B1-07 well online, with field production peaking in January at 2,323 bpd.

Eni’s Oooguruk field averaged 6,645 bpd in April, down 16%, 1,267 bpd, from an April average of 7,912 bpd, and down 21.5% from an April 2018 average of 8,459 bpd. Eni acquired the 70% of the field it did not already own, and operatorship, in January from Caelus Alaska.

The ExxonMobil Production-operated Point Thomson field averaged 8,027 bpd in April, down 17%, 1,647 bpd, from an April average of 9,674, but up 152.8% from an April 2018 average of 3,175 bpd. Volumes fluctuated as ExxonMobil addressed compressor issues but had largely stabilized since the field came back online in October after a three-month period when it was offline for maintenance.

Cook Inlet

Cook Inlet production averaged 15,397 bpd in April, up 0.4%, 68 bpd, from a March average of 15,329 bpd, and up 0.1% from an April 2018 average of 15,387.

Hilcorp’s Beaver Creek field, Cook Inlet’s smallest oil field, averaged 417 bpd in April, up 22.4%, 76 bpd, from a March average of 341 bpd and up 363.9% from an April 2018 average of 90 bpd. Hilcorp completed a re-drill at the field in November, kicking production up in that month to 904 bpd from an October average of 71 bpd.

Hilcorp’s Granite Point field averaged 2,586 bpd in April, down 4.7%, 128 bpd, from a March average of 2,714, and down 7.2% from an April 2018 average of 2,788 bpd.

BlueCrest’s Hansen field, the Cosmopolitan project, averaged 1,668 bpd in April, up 6.8%, 106 bpd, from a March average of 1,562 bpd, and up 123.3% from an April 2018 average of 747 bpd. The field was producing from two wells last April; this April AOGCC data show five wells in production.

Hilcorp’s McArthur River field, Cook Inlet’s largest, averaged 4,912 bpd in April, up 0.2%, 9 bpd, from a March average of 4,903 bpd and up 5% from an April 2018 average of 4,678 bpd.

Middle Ground Shoal, also a Hilcorp field, averaged 1,321 bpd in April, down 6.1%, 86 bpd, from a March average of 1,408 bpd and down 10.2% from an April 2018 average of 1,472 bpd.

Redoubt Shoal, operated by Glacier Oil & Gas subsidiary Cook Inlet Energy, averaged 1,231 bpd in April, down 2%, 25 bpd, from a March average of 1,256 bpd and down 9.9% from an April 2018 average of 1,367 bpd.

Hilcorp’s Swanson River field averaged 1,072 bpd in April, down 2.9%, 32 bpd, from a March average of 1,104 bpd and down 26.5% from an April 2018 average of 1,458 bpd.

Hilcorp’s Trading Bay field averaged 1,615 bpd in April, up 10.4%, 152 bpd, from a March average of 1,462, but down 7.9% from an April 2018 average of 1,754 bpd.

The West McArthur River field, operated by Glacier Oil & Gas subsidiary Cook Inlet Energy, averaged 575 bpd in April, down 0.6%, 3 bpd, from a March average of 579 bpd and down 44.3% from an April 2018 average of 1,033 bpd.

ANS crude oil production peaked in 1988 at 2.1 million bpd; Cook Inlet crude oil production peaked in 1970 at more than 227,000 bpd.






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