Prudhoe Bay News

Several workers on a BP Plc oil platform in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico have tested positive for coronavirus, the company said on Wednesday, a day after a worker at BP's operations in Alaska also tested positive.The cases are the first recorded among oil workers in the Gulf of Mexico and Alaska, and follow a positive test at an Equinor offshore project in the North Sea.A case of the coronavirus was also reported at BP's Whiting, Indiana refinery, according to local media reports.More than 850…

US-based Crowley Maritime Corp. announced on Wednesday that it has realigned its marine services organization and introduced new leadership.In a move that aims to provide better support to customers, Crowley Marine Services, part of the company’s shipping arm, will now be comprised of three distinct, yet interrelated business segments: offshore services, ship assist and tanker escort and engineering services – those provided by Crowley and subsidiary Jensen Maritime Consultants.Jeff Andreini…

British oil major BP Alaska announced that it is selling its entire business to Hilcorp Alaska, marking the exit from Alaska after six decades.The $5.6 billion sale includes Opens a New Window. interests in the Prudhoe Bay oil field, Point Thomson gas field and the trans-Alaska pipeline system, BP said in a release.Bob Dudley, BP group chief executive, said: "Alaska has been instrumental in BP's growth and success for well over half a century and our work there has helped shape the careers of many throughout the company. We are extraordinarily proud of the world-class business we have built, working alongside our partners and the State of Alaska…

Cook Inlet Tug & Barge (CITB), an independently managed subsidiary of Foss Maritime Company, has announced that operations on Alaska’s North Slope are officially underway for the 2019 ice-free season. Three newly acquired tugs, along with barges and shore equipment, will be operating out of Prudhoe Bay for approximately the next three months.“It is great to see these vessels on the water and ready to work,” said Jeff Johnson, President of CITB. “These shallow-draft tugs and barges…

Cook Inlet Tug & Barge (CITB), an independently managed subsidiary of Foss Maritime Company, entered into an Asset Purchase Agreement with Crowley Vessel Sales Group and completed the purchase of all of Crowley’s Prudhoe Bay, Alaska assets – including tugs, barges, heavy machinery and other vehicles and equipment.“These assets are already positioned on the North Slope,” said John Parrott, President and CEO of Foss. “They are operationally ready to perform shallow draft tug and…

BP announced that it has entered into agreements with ConocoPhillips that will significantly increase its holding in the Clair field, a core asset of BP’s North Sea business in the UK, while also selling its non-operating interest in the Kuparuk and satellite oilfields in Alaska. BP has entered into an agreement to purchase from ConocoPhillips a 16.5% interest in the BP-operated Clair field, west of Shetland in the UK, buying a ConocoPhillips subsidiary that will hold this interest in the field. As a result, BP will hold a 45.1% interest in Clair and ConocoPhillips will retain a 7.5% interest. Separately BP has entered into agreements…

A group of 37 U.S.-based scientists whose research focuses on Arctic wildlife asked two U.S. senators in a letter on Thursday not to open the National Arctic Wildlife Refuge to oil and gas exploration, according to a copy seen by Reuters. The scientists, including several retired former officials from the Alaska Department of Fish & Game, the U.S. Geological Survey and the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, said in a letter to Senator Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Senator Maria Cantwell…

The oil giant British Petroleum (BP) oil and gas well on Alaska’s Northern Slope that blew out on Friday continues to spill crude oil and gas uncontrollably. There have been no injuries or reports of damage to wildlife, but crews trying to secure the well have failed amid frigid winds gusting to 38 miles an hour. Well pressure was monitored throughout the night and excess pressure was bled off to keep it within a safe rang. There was no estimate about volumes of natural gas and oil released. The Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation (ADEC) said in a statement that asecond leak had been reduced but was still emitting gas. Washington Post quoted Brett Clanton…

As the City of San Francisco commissions its latest fireboat today, the vessel, designed by Seattle-based Jensen Maritime Consultants, exemplifies the evolution and growth of the naval architecture and marine engineering firm since it was acquired by Crowley Maritime Corp. in 2008. “Eight years ago I’m not sure this project would have been in our sweet spot,” said Johan Sperling, vice president of Crowley’s marine solutions group, which includes Jensen. “But over the past eight years, Crowley has made a considerable effort to give us all the tools we need to expand into new areas. “It’s one thing to be able to design a good looking boat, but if it can’t be built efficiently and cost effectively, and if it doesn’t operate the way it is supposed to, what do you really have?” said Sperling.

As the oil industry awaits a much-needed rebound, Foss Maritime’s robust presence in the Arctic region underscores its commitment to the region, the environment, and a business plan that looks ahead to the next chapter. Reports of the death of commercial Arctic activities have been greatly exaggerated. While Arctic energy projects have, by and large, been put on the back burner – like most things related to energy in other places – there are still many projects ongoing; and still others being planned.

ExxonMobil said today it has started production at its Point Thomson project, the first company-operated project on Alaska’s North Slope. Central pad facilities are designed to initially produce about 5,000 barrels per day of condensate and 100 million standard cubic feet per day of recycled gas. The recycled gas is re-injected for future recovery. At full rate production, the facility is designed to produce up to 10,000 barrels per day of natural gas condensate and 200 million cubic feet of recycled gas. It is anticipated to reach that level when the west pad well is online in a few months. The Point Thomson reservoir holds an estimated 8 trillion cubic feet of natural gas and associated condensate – a high-quality hydrocarbon similar to kerosene or diesel.

The Navy announced March 25 that all primary objectives for Ice Exercise (ICEX) 2016 have been met and the breakdown of Ice Camp Sargo is underway. "The objectives of demonstrating presence, gaining additional Arctic operational experience, furthering partnerships and expanding scientific research were all achieved over the four weeks in which the ice camp was operational. The hard work and dedication displayed by the Arctic Submarine Laboratory, the ICEX participants, and the shore support team made this event an overall success," said Vice Adm. Joseph E. Tofalo, commander, Submarine Forces. With the primary objectives met and indications of adverse environmental conditions…

U.S. energy firms this week cut oil rigs for a 12th week in a row to the lowest level since December 2009 as drillers continue to slash capital expenditures despite crude prices having apparently bottomed, data showed on Friday. Looking forward, many analysts think the rig count will rebound later this year when prices rise. Drillers removed six oil rigs in the week ended March 11, bringing the total rig count down to 386, oil services company Baker Hughes Inc said. That compares with 866 oil rigs operating in the same week a year ago. Drillers started to steadily reduce their rig count after crude prices began to collapse mid-2014. U.S. crude futures were trading just under $39 a barrel, up 8 percent on the week and set for its fourth weekly gain on forecasts of tighter supplies as U.S.

Dive and salvage teams worked to remove debris used as anchor blocks by environmental activists protesting Shell’s Arctic drilling aboard a barge in Seattle’s Alki Seacrest Park on May 19. A dive team from Global Diving & Salvage, Inc., along with divers from Global Underwater Explorers (GUE) Seattle, collaborated to remove several concrete blocks and thick steel mooring cables that held barge Solar Pioneer in place as the activists protested Shell’s Polar Pioneer arctic drilling rig then housed at Seattle’s Harbor Island Terminal 5.

About half a million barrels of oil is extracted each day from Alaska’s Prudhoe Bay oilfields. One of its drilling sites, Endicott, is located on a spit of land connected by the gravel Prudhoe Bay road system and is normally accessible by truck – until recently, when the road was washed out. Faced with the dilemma of how to get workers, food and supplies to the work site, Hilcorp, a privately-held exploration and production companies in the U.S., turned to Crowley and its hovercraft, Arctic Hawk.

The Alaska LNG project marks another significant milestone with today’s announcement by the United States Department of Energy that it has conditionally authorized the Alaska LNG Project LLC to export liquefied natural gas to non-Free Trade Agreement countries. The application to export up to 20 million metric tons per year of liquefied natural gas from Alaska for a 30-year period was submitted to the U.S. Department of Energy last July. Authorization to export to nations with existing free trade agreements with the U.S. was previously received in November 2014. Today’s announcement conditionally further expands the authorization to include non-Free Trade Agreement countries as well.

The Alaska LNG project marks another milestone with today’s announcement by the United States Department of Energy that it has conditionally authorized the Alaska LNG Project LLC to export liquefied natural gas to non-Free Trade Agreement countries. The application to export up to 20 million metric tons per year of liquefied natural gas from Alaska for a 30-year period was submitted to the U.S. Department of Energy last July. Authorization to export to nations with existing free trade agreements with the U.S. was previously received in November 2014. Today’s announcement conditionally further expands the authorization to include non-Free Trade Agreement countries as well. “We are very pleased with the progress this represents,” said Steve Butt, Alaska LNG senior project manager.

Alaska's lone road to North Slope oil field operations remains closed for the third time in two months while emergency crews continue to redirect flooding from an adjacent river, state officials said on Friday. Alaska Governor Bill Walker's office said he would sign a second disaster proclamation while in Deadhorse, the base of operations for several oilfields, after a three-day tour of drill sites that included a fly-over of the flooded area. Production and pipeline operations have not been affected by the closure, said BP Plc spokeswoman Dawn Patience, operator for the Prudhoe Bay field. A 10-mile stretch of the Dalton Highway leading into Deadhorse shut down early on Monday morning and state transportation officials had hoped to re-open the roadway on Friday.

Even the so-called shale revolution in the United States did not stop striving for sustainable business with the direct support of the state to extract "Arctic" oil Don wrote on his page to Facebook. In the Arctic sector of the US (Alaska) are two sedimentary basins - the North Slope of Alaska and the Beaufort. In these basins exploration conducted most intensively since the late 1970s until 1996, he reminded the politician. Much of this work has been concentrated in the eastern part of the basin of the North Slope of Alaska, where in 1968 opened a giant oil field Prudhoe Bay, which is being developed since 1977. Since the beginning of work on the Arctic shelf of the United States was drilled 131 exploration well…

Crowley Marine Services, Inc. has sold a second sister-tug of the Point Class to Island Tug & Barge Co., Marcon International, Inc. reported. The sale of the ABS +A1, Towing, +AMS classed, 2,100BHP shallow draft ocean towing / push tug Pt. Oliktok mirrors the transaction which Marcon brokered in 2013 between the two parties on the sister vessel ex-Pt. Barrow. The three Point Class sister-tugs were specifically designed and built to work in the Arctic, where Crowley needed vessels…

Edison Chouest’s Fairweather, LLC lessens Arctic risk while increasing efficiencies in a challenging environment. As interest in offshore commerce in the Arctic increases, key components of any successful operation in this theatre include logistics, assets, and of course, a healthy dose of experience while operating in cold weather environments. To that end, Fairweather LLC’s Arctic operations include the Deadhorse Aviation Center (DAC). Strategically located at Prudhoe Bay, DAC provides oil companies and their suppliers with an aviation command center to manage both onshore operations and Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) exploration and production activities on the Arctic Ocean and Beaufort Sea.

Work crews for BP Plc were clearing contaminated snow on Thursday on Alaska's North Slope after a Prudhoe Bay well line ruptured, spraying a 34-acre area with crude oil and natural gas. Just how much liquid escaped from the line remains under investigation by BP and Alaska's Department of Environmental Conservation. It remains unclear whether the leak, detected earlier this week, is connected to a decline in North Slope oil production. BP did not return emails seeking comment. Since the spill occurred, daily North Slope production has dropped about 10,000 barrels per day, from 533,000 to 521,000, according to state tracking data. As of Saturday, however, two days before an inspector discovered the problem, production was at 551,000, according to Alaska's Department of Revenue.

Commander, Submarine Forces (COMSUBFOR) announced an early end to Ice Camp Nautilus on March 23. The ice camp was a temporary structure built and operated especially for Ice Exercise 2014 (ICEX-2014). Personnel at Ice Camp Nautilus, which is built into the ice floe north of Prudhoe Bay, Alaska, began a careful breakdown of the camp Sunday. ICEX-2014 began March 17 and was scheduled to continue through March 30. However, large shifts in wind direction created instabilities in the wind-driven ice floes of the Arctic Ocean…