Torok formations, the companies have told the state Division of Oil and Gas. The division recently approved a new unit for state oil and gas leases in the area, which is off - shore the producing Alpine field and the National Petroleum Reserve–Alaska. The companies hold 77,848 acres of state leas- es that are adjacent to 88,000 acres recently re- linquished by Shell in its West Harrison Bay unit. Shell held its acreage for years and felt the area has potential but was unable to secure a partner in ex- ploring the area. Narwhal said it will be evaluating options for rigs and equipment in 2025 as well as reprocessing seis- mic data acquired in the area. Narwhal and EE said they have invested $6.8 million so far in the project. The Nanushuk geo- logic formation is known to be productive in areas to the south, where the Pikka oil project is now be- ing developed, and Narwhal and EEL believe that it extends north into Harrison Bay, which is in state waters. Meanwhile, Pantheon Resources is drilling its Megrez 1 exploration well to further evaluate dis - coveries made south of Prudhoe Bay. The company has been exploring Ahpun and Kodiak, two pros- pects near the state’s Dalton Highway and Trans Alaska Pipeline System. Pantheon has contracted a Nabors Alaska drill rig for the work. Pantheon built a gravel pad in October near the Dalton to support the drilling. The pad can be used year-round. Pantheon has been working for several years in the area through its Alaska subsidiary, Great Bear Petroleum. Oil and gas has been discovered and the company is now working to firm up estimates of the resource before making a development decision. The project will involve horizontal production wells and multi- stage fracturing of reservoir rock to increase flow rates. In the established producing fields, Hilcorp En - ergy plans new drilling in the Milne Point field that will expand its production further. The company told the state Division of Oil and Gas it plans 19 wells, roughly half as oil producers and half to in- ject water to maintain reservoir pressures. Most of the drilling will be with large conven- tional “rotary” drill rigs but some will be with smaller “coiled-tubing” units where the drilling is done with flexible tubing mounted on trucks, which is less expensive than drilling with conventional rigs. Hilcorp has been incrementally increasing pro- duction at Milne Point though an aggressive devel- opment program. The company told state officials that Milne Point production averaged 35,757 barrels per day in 2021, 37,466 barrels per day in 2022 and 39,944 barrels per day in 2023. The company’s lat- est estimate 43,474 barrels per day, on average.
Photo by Judy Patrick Hilcorp Energy remains active in the Milne Point field planning to add multiple wells.
— Tim Bradner
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