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February ANS down marginally from January North Slope production averages 553,435 bpd, down month-over-month; January Cook Inlet production averages 13,862 bpd, down 4.8% KRISTEN NELSON Petroleum News
Alaska North Slope crude oil production averaged 553,434 barrels per day in February, down 0.3 percent, 1,418 bpd, from a January average of 554,852 bpd, but up 2.2 percent from a February 2016 average of 541,450 bpd.
The largest per-barrel increase was at the BP Exploration (Alaska)-operated Prudhoe Bay field, the Slope’s largest, which averaged 318,472 bpd in February, up 1.8 percent, 5,703 bpd, from a January average of 312,769 bpd.
Prudhoe Bay includes satellite production from Aurora, Borealis, Midnight Sun, Orion, Polaris, Sag River, Schrader Bluff and Ugnu, as well as production from the Hilcorp Alaska-operated Milne Point and Northstar fields.
January production for Milne Point averaged 18,946 bpd, down 11 percent, 2,342 bpd, from a December average of 21,289 bpd. Northstar averaged 5,700 bpd in January, up 1.82 percent, seven bpd, from a December average of 5,693 bpd.
Information for February comes from the Alaska Department of Revenue’s Tax Division which reports North Slope oil production consolidated by major production centers and provides daily production and monthly averages. More detailed data, including Cook Inlet and individual North Slope fields and pools, is reported by the Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission on a month-delay basis.
The BP-operated Lisburne field averaged 22,966 bpd, up 4.87 percent, 1,067 bpd, from a January average of 21,899 bpd. Lisburne includes production from Niakuk, Point McIntyre and Raven.
Other ANS fields down month-over-month Production from other North Slope fields was down month-over-month.
The smallest month-over-month decrease was at the ConocoPhillips Alaska-operated Kuparuk River field, which averaged 142,676 bpd, down 0.1 percent, 91 bpd, from a January average of 142,767 bpd. Kuparuk production volumes include satellite production from Meltwater, Tabasco, Tarn and West Sak, as well as from the Eni-operated Nikaitchuq and Caelus Alaska-operated Oooguruk fields. AOGCC data show Nikaitchuq averaged 20,405 bpd in January, down 4.2 percent, 884 bpd, from a December average of 21,289 bpd, while Oooguruk averaged 14,098 bpd in January, down 1.8 percent, 257 bpd, from a December average of 14,355 bpd.
The ConocoPhillips-operated Alpine field averaged 58,688 bpd in February, down 1.9 percent, 1,144 bpd, from a January average of 59,832 bpd. Alpine volumes include satellite production from Fiord, Nanuq and Qannik.
The largest month-over-month decline, 39.5 percent, was at the Hilcorp-operated Endicott field, which averaged 10,632 bpd, down 6,953 bpd from a January average of 17,585.
Endicott volumes include Eider, Minke and Sag Delta, the Caelus Alaska-operated Badami field and the ExxonMobil Production-operated Point Thomson field. Endicott volumes were in the 9,000 and 10,000 bpd range most days in February, peaking the last few days of the month and hitting 19,758 bpd Feb. 28. Prior to Point Thomson coming online in April Endicott volumes averaged in the 9,000 and 10,000 bpd range. Point Thomson can produce 10,000 bpd and AOGCC data show it averaged 7,634 bpd in January, up 10.7 percent, 736 bpd, from a December average of 6,898 bpd. Daily Endicott volumes reported by the Tax Division appear to indicate that Point Thomson was not producing at anywhere near 10,000 for the majority of February, but volumes for that month will not be available until late March. AOGCC data for Badami show that field averaged 913 bpd in January, down 3.8 percent, 36 bpd, from a December average of 949 bpd.
Cook Inlet sown in January AOGCC data show Cook Inlet averaged 13,862 bpd in January, down 4.8 percent, 703 bpd, from a December average of 14,565 bpd, with all but three Cook Inlet fields down month-over-month.
The Glacier Oil & Gas operated-Redoubt Shoal field had the largest month-over-month gain by percentage, averaging 801 bpd in January, up 25.7 percent, 164 bpd, from a December average of 19,759 bpd, followed by Glacier’s West McArthur River field, which averaged 1,331 bpd in January, up 16.3 percent, 186 bpd, from a December average of 1,145 bpd. The only other Cook Inlet field with a month-over-month production gain was the Hilcorp Alaska’s Trading Bay field, which averaged 1,680 bpd in January, up 2.2 percent, 36 bpd, from a December average of 1,644 bpd.
The largest month-over-month drop was at Hilcorp’s McArthur River field, Cook Inlet’s largest, which averaged 3,697 bpd in January, down 19.6 percent, 899 bpd, from a December average of 4,595 bpd.
Hilcorp’s Beaver Creek field averaged 190 bpd, down 5.2 percent, 10 bpd, from a December average of 200 bpd, while Hilcorp’s Middle Ground Shoal field averaged 1,750 bpd in January, down 4.4 percent, 80 bpd, from a December average of 1,829 bpd.
Hilcorp’s Swanson River field averaged 1,828 bpd in January, down 3.8 percent, 73 bpd, from a December average of 1,901 bpd.
The BlueCrest-operated Hansen field, the Cosmopolitan project, averaged 154 bpd in January, down 2.3 percent, four bpd, from a December average of 158 bpd.
Hilcorp’s Granite Point field averaged 2,431 bpd in January, down 1 percent, 24 bpd, from a December average of 2,455 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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