Port of Adak is referred to by its staff as “Port Aleutchon,” a play on words referencing Louisiana’s Port Fourchon, a sea port with significant petroleum industry traffic from offshore Gulf platforms.

The former naval air station also has an airport with aircraft hangars, an instrument landing system and glidescope, 465,000 barrels of fuel storage, 400,000-plus square feet of warehouse space, a terminal and two asphalt runways. The runways are at 19-foot elevation and 200 feet wide, with one 7,790 feet long and the other 7,605 feet in length.

Adak Airport is operated by the Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities.

According to OSI, there are more than 100 townhouse and hotel-type personnel housing units available on the island, and hundreds more in good shape that simply need renovating.

“With the development of the OCS (outer continental shelf) in the Arctic by Shell and soon ConocoPhillips and Statoil, it makes sense to have a deepwater facility that is ice free year around with housing, office space, fuel capability, large runways and the infrastructure to support the equipment supplies and personnel for not only exploratory drilling, but the development of the production facilities as well,” said Rick Wilson of OSI. “Adak has 100-plus acres of flat paved access real estate for storing pipe and equipment which will be needed during the construction phase of sub-sea pipelines and associated facilities.”

When asked in a follow-up email whether ship repair was available at Adak, and if there were cranes available to support it, Wilson said, “yes we have a crane and can get more or bigger. Dry Dock is also something we can offer but it’s not there yet.”

—Kay Cashman

See full story in June 24 issue, available at 11 a.m. Friday, June 22, at www.PetroleumNews.com