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Hilcorp applies to Army Corps of Engineers for new Prudhoe O Pad
Kristen Nelson Petroleum News
Prudhoe Bay unit operator Hilcorp North Slope has applied to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for gravel placement required for O Pad, a new pad west of L Pad near the western edge of Prudhoe.
In a Feb. 22 public notice on the plan, filed Nov. 20, the corps said the purpose of the new pad was to expand access to the Schrader Bluff reservoir, with O Pad allowing access to 3,500 undeveloped acres.
Some 30 acres of wetlands would be filled in the project, which would use a total of 500,000 cubic yards of fill.
Major project elements There are two major elements of the project -- O Pad and an access road connecting O Pad to L Pad.
The new pad will be some 1,700 feet long by 600 feet wide, with gravel at a minimum compacted depth of 5 feet, the corps said.
The fill material would be compacted when it was placed during the winter and reworked during the summer months to assure adequate compaction.
The access road from L Pad to O Pad would accommodate a larger drill rig as well as construction traffic, the corps said. The road will be some 5,500 feet long and 32 feet wide, with gravel placed with a minimum compaction of 5 feet. The corps said the road is designed to allow safe bypass around L Pad facilities for simultaneous project construction and L Pad operations.
O Pad construction will fill 24 acres of wetlands with 349,500 cubic yards of fill; the access road will fill 5.5 acres of wetlands with 150,000 cubic yards of fill; and vertical support members for the pipe rack will fill 0.5 acres of wetlands with 500 cubic yards of fill.
Ice roads, construction schedule An 11-mile ice road will be constructed from Milne Point Mine Site 3 to O Pad to provide access for gravel haul, with a second 1-mile ice road required to install the O Pad flowline and gas lift line from L Pad, with the 1-mile ice road used to stage equipment and drive VSMs for the pipe work.
January 2025 is the anticipated start date for ice road construction and mining operations, depending on when conditions allow ice road construction in the 2024-25 winter season, the corps said.
February 2025 is the anticipated start date for pad and access road construction, with completion scheduled by April 2025, and pad infrastructure construction to begin following pad compaction.
Flowline construction would occur in the next season, from December 2026 to May 2027, with O Pad expected to be fully operational in November 2027.
--KRISTEN NELSON
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