ANS production up 2% month over month

534,307 bpd in October from North Slope, compared to 523,554 bpd in September; Cook Inlet September production up 1% from August

Kristen Nelson

Petroleum News

Alaska North Slope crude oil production averaged 534,307 barrels per day in October, up 2.1 percent from a September average of 523,554 bpd. The largest volume increase came from the North Slope’s largest field, the BP Exploration (Alaska)-operated Prudhoe Bay, which averaged 298,727 bpd in October, up 2.6 percent, and 7,577 bpd, from a September average of 291,150 bpd.

Prudhoe Bay includes production from satellites at Aurora, Borealis, Midnight Sun and Orion, as well as from the BP-operated Northstar and Milne Point fields.

The largest percentage change was at the BP-operated Endicott field, which averaged 9,283 bpd in October, up 38.4 percent from a September average of 6,707 bpd, apparently a one-month down spike, as the field averaged 9,538 bpd in August.

Information for October 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.

Endicott production includes satellites at that field, as well as production from the Savant Alaska-operated Badami field to the east. September numbers for Badami, from the AOGCC, show the field averaged 1,237 bpd, down marginally from 1,243 bpd in August.

The ConocoPhillips Alaska-operated Kuparuk River field, the second largest on the North Slope, averaged 135,516 bpd in October, up 0.7 percent from a September average of 134,525.

The division’s Kuparuk numbers include satellite production from West Sak, NEWS (Northeast West Sak), Tabasco, Tarn and Meltwater, as well as from the Eni-operated Nikaitchuq field and the Pioneer Natural Resources Alaska-operated Oooguruk field.

AOGCC figures show Nikaitchuq averaged 15,409 bpd in September, up 9.5 percent from an August average of 14,074, while Oooguruk averaged 7,530 bpd in September, down 8.9 percent from an August average of 8,266 bpd.

Eni does its own processing, while Oooguruk oil is processed through Kuparuk facilities. Oooguruk ownership is changing hands with a sale announced Oct. 25 to independent Caelus Energy Alaska expected to close at the end of the year (see story in Nov. 3 issue).

BP-operated Lisburne averaged 29,763 bpd in October, down 0.7 percent from a September average of 29,984 bpd. Lisburne, part of greater Prudhoe Bay, includes production from Point McIntyre, Niakuk and Raven.

The ConocoPhillips-operated Alpine field, the farthest west production on the North Slope, averaged 61,018 bpd in October, up 0.3 percent from a September average of 61,188 bpd. Alpine includes production from satellites at Fiord, Nanuq and Qannik, with the majority of the field’s production, according to AOGCC figures for September, coming from Alpine (64 percent), followed by Fiord (31 percent), and Nanuq and Qannik each at less than 3 percent of the Alpine total.

AOGCC figures show Cook Inlet crude oil production for September averaged 16,399 bpd, up 0.9 percent from an August average of 16,247 bpd.

Cook Inlet Energy saw month-over-month increases at both of the fields it operates, with Redoubt Shoal averaging 1,799 bpd, up 6.4 percent from an August average of 1,690 bpd, and West McArthur River averaging 634 bpd, up 7.9 percent from an August average of 588 bpd.

Among the Hilcorp Alaska-operated fields, Beaver Creek averaged 144 bpd, down 5 percent from an August average of 152 bpd; Granite Point averaged 2,254 bpd in September, up 1.5 percent from an August average of 2,221 bpd; McArthur River averaged 4,685 bpd, up 4.8 percent from an August average of 4,471 bpd; Swanson River averaged 2,388 bpd in September, down 2.5 percent from an August average of 2,450 bpd; and Trading Bay averaged 2,234 bpd, up 1.2 percent from an August average of 2,208 bpd.

The XTO-operated Middle Ground Shoal field averaged 2,259 bpd in September, down 8.4 percent from an August average of 2,467 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.