History of North Slope Oil Development

History of North Slope Oil Development. Vignettes in History. , About 200 million years before Eskimos, whalers, white hunters, trappers or explorers set foot on the barren, pond-pocked tundra of the North Slope, 250 miles north of the Arctic Circle, dynamic geologic forces were at work forming the richest petroleum deposit on the North American continent. Discovery of this petroleum deposit in 1968 at Prudhoe Bay would forever alter the course of thousands of lives and change Alaska's destiny., With 9.6 billion barrels of recoverable crude oil of an estimated 22 billion barrels in place, and 26 trillion feet of natural gas, this was the largest oilfield ever discovered in North America and the 18th largest oilfield ever found in the world., To move Prudhoe oil to tidewater at Valdez, on Alaska's southern coast, required a massive, multi-billion dollar development at Prudhoe and construction of the 800-mile trans Alaska pipeline. Costing about $8 billion, the pipeline is the largest privately funded project in history., Because of permit delays and the need for Congressional action, it wasn't until June 20, 1977, that the first Prudhoe oil began its long trip to U.S. markets through the trans Alaska pipeline and to tankers in the Valdez Terminal. Through a merger with British Petroleum, the Standard Oil Company acquired a major interest in the vast Prudhoe field and became operator for its western side. Atlantic Richfield (ARCO) operates the eastern side of the field. At its maximum allowable production rate of 1.5 million barrels per day, reached in late 1979, the Prudhoe field supplied about 9.5 percent of the U.S. daily petroleum requirements. Although the field was predicted to go into a gradual decline in the late 1980s, it is expected to produce oi! well into the 21st century., The development of Prudhoe and other oilfields on the North Slope started America on the road to energy self-sufficiency by providing a reliable, long-term petroleum source. It endowed Alaska and its people with economic prosperity and a promising future The pioneering technology and experience required for petroleum development in the arctic will serve humankind in its continued search of vital natural resources... be it to the far corners of this planet, or to the vast reaches of the ultimate frontier: space.