Governor Mike Dunleavy is praising the announcement from Oil Search and Repsol to move forward with Phase 1 of the Pikka project on Alaska’s North Slope. Located in the Nanushuk oil formation on state leases, the Pikka unit contains an estimated 768 million barrels of recoverable oil. The company will invest $2.6 billion to bring the field into production by 2026. They aim to create 2,600 jobs during construction, and 500 jobs once oil production begins.
Governor Dunleavy said:
“This announcement will continue the renaissance on Alaska’s North Slope. Alaska has a rich and successful oil and natural gas history, and we welcome the family wage jobs the Pikka project will bring, and the 80,000 barrels of new oil it will send down the Trans-Alaska Pipeline System each day. Americans are paying sky high energy prices right now – but it doesn’t have to be that way. Alaska has the resources and environmental safeguards in place to meet America’s energy needs today and for decades to come.”
Department of Revenue Commissioner Lucinda Mahoney:
“This announcement opens a major new chapter for the North Slope, and confirms a bright future for natural resource development in Alaska. These two companies have demonstrated that a major new hydrocarbon project in Alaska can be done with community support, full compliance with Alaska’s rigorous environmental standards, and an internationally competitive low emissions profile. This development will bring billions of dollars to the State in royalties, significant new throughput volumes to the Trans Alaska Pipeline System, and an economic boom to the people of Alaska. We believe this investment will yield real value to Alaska for many years ahead and thank both Oil Search/Santos and Repsol for their commitment to Alaskans.”
The decision was also praised by U.S. Senators Lisa Murkowski and Dan Sullivan.
Murkowski said:
“This is great news for Alaska that will strengthen our economy for a long time to come. The Pikka project will help refill the Trans-Alaska Pipeline System while creating good jobs for Alaskans and bolstering our nation’s energy security. I appreciate the approach that Santos and their partner, Repsol, have taken to advance this project, their strong collaboration with local entities and communities, and their commitment to producing this resource with net-zero emissions from the project itself.”
Sullivan said:
“It’s exciting to see this project, which has been in the works since I was serving as Alaska’s Department of Natural Resources Commissioner, finally come to fruition. Today’s announcement is great news for energy security, national security, and for economic and community development, including thousands of jobs for Alaskans, in our state where we have the highest environmental standards in the world.”
The Pikka project is projected to produce 80,000 barrels of oil per day by 2026. Santos owns 51 percent of the project and Repsol holds a 49 percent stake. Pikka will create an estimated 2,600 construction jobs and 500 permanent jobs. Contracts are expected to be awarded this week.
