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April production down 2.4 percent from March
Kristen Nelson
Alaska crude oil production for April was down an average of 26,763 barrels a day from March, a drop of 2.36 percent. The Alaska Department of Revenue Division of Oil and Gas Audit said that Alaska North Slope production was throttled back due to high inventories at Valdez on two occasions, April 3-5 and April 17-20, and that there was maintenance at Prudhoe Bay in preparation for the miscible injection enhancement project.
Alaska North Slope crude production averaged 1.079 million barrels a day in April, down 2.41 percent from a March average of 1.106 million barrels a day, and down 12.49 percent from April of 1998, when ANS production averaged 1.233 million barrels a day. Cook Inlet production averaged 30,419 barrels a day in April, down 2.28 percent from an average of 30,499 barrels a day in March.
Prudhoe up, Lisburne down Production at Prudhoe Bay increased, averaging 589,164 barrels a day in April, up 0.94 percent (5,497 barrels a day) from 583,667 barrels a month in March. Kuparuk had the largest drop in barrels of production, averaging 265,671 barrels a month, down 16,206 barrels (5.75 percent) from a March average of 281,877 barrels a day.
The Lisburne production center, which processes crude oil from the Point McIntyre, Niakuk and Lisburne fields, had the largest percentage decrease, dropping 8.51 percent (12,404 barrels a day) from a March average of 145,725 barrels a day.
Milne Point production was down 4.41 percent, 2,493 barrels, to an average of 54,049 barrels a day, from 56,542 barrels a day in March. Production at Endicott averaged 36,978 barrels a day in April, down 2.83 percent (1,077 barrels a day) from a March average of 38,055 barrels a day. Endicott had averaged more than 50,000 barrels a day of oil earlier in the year, but has had one of two gas compression trains down for upgrading (see Endicott field story).
Cook Inlet level Cook Inlet production held steady, averaging 30,419 barrels a day in April, down 0.26 percent (80 barrels a day) from a March average of 30,499 barrels a day.
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