Cook Inlet production down 2% in January Volumes up over December at Hilcorp’s Swanson River and Trading Bay fields, and at Cook Inlet Energy’s West McArthur River unit Kristen Nelson Petroleum News
Crude oil production from Alaska’s Cook Inlet averaged 16,584 barrels per day in January, down 1.8 percent from a December average of 16,888 bpd, according to data from the Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission.
The commission provides information on a field and pool level on a month-delay basis, while the Alaska Department of Revenue’s Tax Division makes data available at the beginning of the following month, but consolidated by major production centers. For the most recent Tax Division data on the North Slope, see story in the March 9 issue.
Cook Inlet fields with increased month-over-month production include three Hilcorp Alaska-operated fields, Beaver Creek, Swanson River and Trading Bay, and the Cook Inlet Energy-operated West McArthur River.
The largest January-over-December increase was at Hilcorp’s Trading Bay field, which averaged 3,132 bpd in January, up 17.7 percent from a December average of 2,662 bpd.
The Hilcorp-operated Swanson River field averaged 2,481 bpd in January, up 9.3 percent from a December average of 2,269 bpd, while the much smaller Hilcorp-operated Beaver Creek averaged 153 bpd in January, up 3 percent from a December average of 148 bpd.
The Cook Inlet Energy-operated West McArthur River field averaged 1,214 bpd in January, up 2 percent from a December average of 1,190 bpd.
Month-over-month declines The largest month-over-month decline was at the Hilcorp-operated McArthur River field, which averaged 3,841 bpd in January, down 15 percent from a December average of 4,523 bpd.
The Cook Inlet Energy-operated Redoubt Shoal field averaged 1,385 bpd in January, down 13 percent from a December average of 1,593 bpd.
Middle Ground Shoal, operated by ExxonMobil subsidiary XTO Energy, averaged 1,986 bpd in January, down 5.2 percent from a December average of 2,096 bpd.
The Hilcorp-operated Granite Point field averaged 2,394 bpd in January, down 0.6 percent from a December average of 2,407 bpd.
Smaller North Slope fields On the North Slope, the Eni-operated Nikaitchuq field, reported by Revenue’s Tax Division as part of Kuparuk River production, averaged 19,511 bpd in January, up 4.1 percent from a December average of 18,744 bpd.
The Pioneer Natural Resources Alaska-operated Oooguruk field, also reported as part of Kuparuk production, averaged 6,557 bpd in January, down 5.9 percent from a December average of 6,965 bpd.
The Savant Alaska-operated Badami field, reported as part of Endicott production by the Tax Division, averaged 1,159 bpd in January, down 5 percent from a December average of 1,222 bpd.
ANS crude oil production peaked in 1988 at 2.1 million bpd; Cook Inlet crude oil production peaked in 1970 at more than 227,000 bpd.
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