DO&G approves various land deals

Apache, Armstrong and Buccaneer pick up additional acreage around existing Cook Inlet plays; Anadarko lets some leases expire

Eric Lidji

For Petroleum News

The Alaska Division of Oil and Gas approved various lease activities in September and October.

True North Energy Corp. transferred 100 percent working interest and some 82.5 royalty interest in two onshore-offshore Cook Inlet leases to Apache Alaska Corp. The leases are just south of the Drift River terminal and west of Kalgin Island, and are contiguous to an offshore lease owned by Dan Donkel, Samuel Cade and two other individual investors.

UltraStar Exploration LLC surrendered one offshore lease north of Beechey Point. The lease was the only acreage in the UltraStar portfolio not committed to its Dewline unit.

The state terminated two leases in the foothills of the Brooks Range Mountains owned by independent Union Energy (Alaska) Inc. — ADL 391326 and ADL 391327 — for failure to pay rental fees, but reinstated the leases to Union Energy before the end of the month.

Alaskan Energy Alliance Inc. transferred 100 percent working interest and 84.5 percent royalty interest in two onshore leases in the southern Kenai Peninsula to Buccaneer Alaska LLC. The two small leases are contiguous to Buccaneer’s West Eagle prospect.

Alaskan Energy also transferred 100 percent working interest and 3 percent royalty interest in another onshore lease in the region to Armstrong Cook Inlet LLC. The 680-acre lease is surrounded by Armstrong acreage contiguous to the North Fork unit.

Independent investors Lee Huggins and Terri Stull-Huggins transferred a 0.25 percent royalty interest in five offshore Cook Inlet leases to Orthwein Energy LP. The leases are at the northern end of the Kitchen Lights unit, operated by Escopeta Oil and Gas Co.

Anadarko Petroleum Corp. allowed four onshore North Slope leases south of the Badami and Point Thomson units to expire, retroactive to March 2011. Alaska Venture Capital Group LLC also allowed two nearby leases to expire, and surrendered 53 other leases.

Independent investor Daniel Donkel allowed five offshore leases to expire. The leases sit in the waters of the Beaufort Sea north of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, and surround a Donkel-owned lease that includes the Stinson No. 1 well drilled by ARCO.

Finally, Armstrong subsidiary 70 & 148 LLC transferred a 7.5 percent working interest and 6 percent royalty interest in 105 North Slope leases to GMT Exploration Co. LLC.

NOTE: A copyrighted oil and gas lease map from Mapmakers Alaska (www.mapmakersalaska.com/) was a research tool used in preparing this story.