Status of Alaskan Gas Reserves and Their Potential Impact on the United States and Canada

Abstract

ABSTRACT ALASKA HAS LONG BEEN RECOGNIZED AS A STOREHOUSE OF VAST MINERAL WEALTH. WHAT STARTED OUT AS "SEWARDS FOLLY" IN 1867, MAY VERY WELL BE THE ELEMENT WHICH WILL SIGNIFICANTLY CONTRIBUTE TO THE UNITED STATES ABILITY TO MAINTAIN ITS PRESENT LEVEL OF ECONOMIC ACTIVITY AND CONTINUE A LIFESTYLE FORESEEN BY ITS FOUNDERS AND FOSTERED THROUGH MORE THAN TWO HUNDRED YEARS IF ITS EXISTENCE. AMONG THE MANY ITEMS IN THE STOREHOUSE OF THE NORTH ARE PROVEN AND POTENTIAL RESERVES OF NATURAL GAS. THE AMERICAN GAS ASSOCIATION ESTIMATES THAT PROVED RESERVES OF GAS IN THE UNITED STATES AT YEAR-END, 1979, WERE 194.9 TRILLION CUBIC FEET. AS OF JANUARY 1, 1979, THE ALASKA OIL AND GAS CONSERVATION COMMISSION ESTIMATES THAT THERE ARE AT LEAST 33.7 TRILLION CUBIC FEET OF PROVEN RECOVERABLE GAS RESERVES IN THE STATE OF ALASKA (SEE PLATE 1). THE TABULATION PREPARED BY THE COMMISSION WAS COMPUTED FROM DATA COMPILED LAST NOVEMBER AND WAS ADJUSTED TO REFLECT ESTIMATED REMAINING RECOVERABLE RESERVES AS OF JANUARY 1, 1979. IT SHOULD BE NOTED THAT SLIGHTLY LESS THAN 85% OF THE PROVEN GAS RESERVES IN ALASKA ARE CONTAINED WITHIN THE PRUDHOE BAY FIELD.IN ADDITION TO RESERVES CONTAINED IN THE PRUDHOE BAY FIELD, RESERVES CONTAINED IN THE KAVIK AND KEMIK FIELDS ARE ALSO LOCATED ON THE ARTIC SLOPE OF ALASKA. THE RESERVES FROM THESE FIELDS ARE UNDETERMINED BY THE ALASKA OIL AND GAS CONSERVATION COMMISSION SINCE SUFFICIENT BASE DATA HAS NOT BE ADEQUATELY DEVELOPED DUE TO LACK OF IMMEDIATE MARKET. RELIABLE SOURCES, HOWEVER, INDICATE THAT THE VOLUME OF RESERVES AVAILABLE FROM THESE TWO FIELDS COULD BE LARGE ENOUGH THAT NEARLY 90% OF THE PRESENTLY PROVEN RESERVES OF GAS IN THE STATE ARE LOCATED IN THE ARCTIC SLOPE BASIN.