North Cook Inlet

Location and Geology

The North Cook Inlet is part of the larger Cook Inlet Basin, a forearc basin situated between the Aleutian Trench and the active volcanic arc on the Alaska Peninsula. The basin is bounded by the Border Ranges fault to the southeast and the Bruin Bay fault to the northwest.

Exploration and Production History

• The first offshore gas field in North Cook Inlet was discovered by Amoco in 1962, with production beginning in 1969. Onshore oil production in the Cook Inlet Basin started earlier, with Richfield Oil Corporation discovering the first oil field at Swanson River on the Kenai Peninsula in 1957, and production commencing in 1959.

Current Operations

• The North Cook Inlet Unit is currently operated by Hilcorp Alaska LLC. This field is a conventional gas development located in shallow water and is one of the active fields in the area.

Infrastructure

• There are 16 active offshore platforms in the North Cook Inlet area, with 15 of these platforms currently owned by Hilcorp. However, six of these platforms no longer produce oil and gas, and four have been offline for over a decade. Despite this, none of the inactive platforms have been removed due to regulatory and economic challenges.

Future Development and Exploration

• The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) has estimated significant undiscovered economic resources within the proposed lease sale area of Lease Sale 258. This includes approximately 192.3 million barrels of oil and 301.9 billion cubic feet of natural gas. The high activity case scenario for this lease sale anticipates the drilling of up to eight exploration and delineation wells over a three-year period.

Environmental and Regulatory Issues

• There are ongoing issues regarding the decommissioning and removal of inactive platforms. State regulators have been pushing for the dismantling of these structures, but oil companies, including Hilcorp, have been resisting due to the high costs involved. The platforms, some of which have been inactive for over 30 years, pose environmental and safety concerns, such as asbestos hazards and advanced states of disrepair.

Repurposing and Future Use

• Despite the challenges, there are efforts to repurpose existing infrastructure for new uses such as renewable energy and carbon sequestration. Hilcorp has expressed interest in exploring these opportunities, which could extend the life and utility of the existing platforms.

Economic and Social Impact

• The oil and gas activities in the Cook Inlet Basin play a critical role in meeting the natural gas commitments to urban Alaska utilities. The project aims to increase oil production while minimizing social, environmental, and economic impacts. Independent oil companies, such as those operating in the area, have been instrumental in maintaining production levels despite the decline of major fields like Prudhoe Bay.

In summary, the North Cook Inlet oil project is characterized by its long history of oil and gas production, ongoing exploration and development activities, significant infrastructure challenges, and efforts to adapt to changing regulatory and environmental requirements.