October 2014 the prospects and challenges for arctic oil development ii acknowledgements we would like to thank our colleagues in oxford and oslo for their help with this research. That company consolidated the interests of 75 companies and individuals with arctic islands land holdings plus the federal government as the major shareholder. The study explores the range of technologies required for exploration and develop ment of offshore. Pdf the challenges in the exploration, development, and production of hydrocarbons in the arctic and the. Statoils arctic exploration fails to find oil the local. Energy security initiative at brookings march 2014 policy brief 1401 offshore oil and gas governance in the arctic a leadership role for the u. The city of barow, the most northerly city in the us, is ground zero for the world. An oil industry consortium including exxon and bp has suspended its canadian arctic exploration program in the beaufort sea, citing insufficient time to begin test drilling before its lease.
Petroleum exploration increases methane emissions from northern. Pdf merge combine pdf files free tool to merge pdf online. Like all offshore drilling, drilling in the arctic is more costly, complicated, and politically controversial than drilling for oil on land. Arctic oil and gas resources made available march 27, 2015.
Arctic oil and natural gas potential, october 2009. The first arctic oil field was developed in the canadian arctic at norman. Specifically, geologists suspect the weddell and ross sea areas may hold 50 billion barrels of oil source. Oil and gas activities to the present arctic portal library.
The oil company says it failed to find enough crude to warrant further exploration of the area. Arctic oil, gas exploration to intensify despite concerns. However, recent technological developments, as well as relatively high oil prices, have allowed for exploration. In overcoming the technical challenges of oil production in the arctic, are we making the most of a strategic resource or heading for an environmental and political minefield. Offshore hydrocarbon resources in the arctic february 2016 6. Once the wellbore is installed and the temporary equipment used for installation is removed, a christmas tree, the most. Oil search, interoil should seek competition approvals for. Shell awaits new giant icebreaker the nanuq was outfitted with oilspillresponse capabilities well before the 2010 macondo spill in the gulf, he noted. The merger also allowed inpex corporation to be enriched by the. Panarctic oils was formed in 1968 as a result of the canadian governments eagerness to encourage exploration of the canadian arctic islands and to assert canadian sovereignty in the region. The group has been lobbying for all oil drilling and exploration in the arctic to stop. Greenland ggu were merged into geological survey of denmark and greenland. Oil companies cool to drilling off alaskas arctic shores despite spending billions to secure a position, the industry continues to turn a cold shoulder to drilling for oil in alaskas arctic.
Oil and gas technologies for the arctic and deepwater office of. Drilling for oil in arctic waters off alaska has been been banned by the u. Korpfjell is located on the northernmost block ever opened to oil exploration in norway, in the southeastern part of the barents sea, and statoil plans to continue exploration next year. At the same time, environmental risks and popular opposition to oil and gas activity in the arctic are factors that could undermine. This paper addresses how risks to the environment in the arctic are handled in decisions regarding the exploration for petroleum resources. Soda pdf merge tool allows you to combine pdf files in seconds. Profound changes in the oil exploration project landscape in japan and overseas. Arctic oil and gas 7 russia russian arctic opportunities may in fact be the big prize.
A wellbore is drilled through the seabed, first for exploratory purposes and then to serve as the drilling site for extraction. The vast arctic region is probably the last remaining unexplored source of hydrocarbons on the planet. While development of oil and gas in greenland has historically focused on offshore areas west of greenland, the bureau of minerals and petroleum of the government of greenland awarded the first oil and gas exploration and exploitation licenses for eastern greenland on 20 december, 20. All the information we have is that an arctic oil spill would be impossible to clean up, said greenpeace. Daly executive vice president exploration, bp plc imperial college 23 september thank you for the invitation to speak at your conference celebrating the centenary of oil technology at imperial college. As a result, the region has received significant interest from the petroleum industry since the onset of the 2010s oil glut in 2014, the commercial interest in arctic exploration has. Amerasian basin, arctic alaska basin, east barents basin, east greenland rift basin, west greenlandeast canada basin, west siberian basin, and the yenisey. Norway opens up record 93 blocks for arctic oil exploration.
Ultimate resources are estimated at 114 billion barrels of undiscovered oil and 2000 trillion cubic feet of natural gas. The arctic science portal is a library of links to websites containing scientific information about the arctic. The aiviq is designed to work in tandem with the nanuq. In recent decades, decreased summer sea ice has resulted in increased shipping traffic and may encourage more offshore oil and gas exploration. Infield systems new offshore arctic oil and gas market report to 2018 provides essential research and analysis on current and future offshore oil and gas developments within the arctic circle and in the three major subarctic areas. Nine of the licences are located in the barents sea and three in the norwegian sea off central norway, the ministry of oil and energy said. A leak would do too much damage to the image of the company. Denmark through greenland has not been a major player in hydrocarbon development. Jez averty, head of exploration in norway for statoil, says it took 33 wells before oil was found in the norwegian north sea.
A year ago this september, royal dutch shell plc began the first new oil drilling in u. Oil exploration and sea ice projections in the arctic. Finally, we combine these results to estimate likely production costs in. Shell to suspend oil exploration in alaskan arctic. During the energy crisis of the 1970s, several oil companies argued in favor of perusing antarctic petroleum and, in the early 1980s, scientists discovered large offshore oil reserves surrounding the continent.
The united states geological survey estimates that over 87% of the arctics oil and natural gas resource about 360 billion barrels oil equivalent is located in seven arctic basin provinces. Arctic oil spills may set off irreversible chainreactions of contamination because inland species, such as polar bears and foxes, rely heavily on coastal resources. Future trends in global oil and gas exploration dr. A significant share of the worlds undiscovered oil and natural gas resources. On march 27, 2015, the national petroleum council npc in approving its report. Greenlanders divided on arctic oil, gas exploration. Page 2 environmental risks with proposed offshore oil and gas development off alaskas north. Download the report 2015 oil and gas reality check deloitte. The oil ministry is offering 93 blocks in the barents sea, entirely in the. Shell to cease oil exploration in alaskan arctic after. The nature of exploration is you cant write off a basin on the. Geological survey, based on decadesold data, said anwr may hold as many as 11. Shell to cease oil exploration in alaskan arctic after disappointing drilling season company becomes latest big oil player to abandon region amid low crude prices.
An exploration well in the norwegian barents sea is used as a case to demonstrate how environmental risks are assessed together with technical and economic considerations in the oil companys decisions to enter into a new area and drill a well. This report was written by visiangain after interviewing thomas young, pe in september of 2011. A history of oil in the arctic today in alaska, the vast majority of oil from the states arctic region comes from onshore drilling wells. Norways government announced initial plans on monday to open a record number of oil exploration blocks in the barents sea, sparking renewed criticism from environmental groups norways. Norway awards oil permits to 11 firms in arctic licensing. The report may be purchased from visiangain on their following website.
With a population of 4,429, barrow is the major launchpad for helicopters shuttling to and from transoceans polar pioneer, the rig now drilling an oil exploration well for shell about 70 miles. In particular we are very grateful for the support and comments provided by bassam fattouh and arild moe. Although mergers and acquisitions took place in the petroleum industry in the 80s and early 90s, it can be noticed that this. Mergers, structural change, and antitrust enforcement. Pdf declining arctic ocean oil and gas developments. The greenland history of petroleum exploration activities dates back to the. Oil and natural gas resources map of the arctic ocean. Otas report on arctic and deepwater oil and gas is intended to provide a timely and. Norway has infuriated environmental groups by opening up a record number of blocks in the arctic for oil exploration. Oil on greenland would be a disaster, he told the financial times. The prospects and challenges for arctic oil development. Climate change, future arctic sea ice, and the competitiveness of. Exxon mobil, bp suspend canadian arctic exploratory. Over the last few years, russia has intensified the development of the vast hydrocarbon resources of its continental shelf, through state incentives aimed at stimulating offshore oil and gas production.
Statoil explored five licenses in the barents sea this summer. Request pdf oil exploration and sea ice projections in the arctic the aim of this study is to investigate how reduction in the sea ice cover may affect oil activity in the arctic during the. If one of the worlds largest oil companies failed, who can win in this highstakes region. The arctic hosts large oil and natural gas resources both onshore and offshore. The potential merger of royal dutch shell and bg group will be the biggest oil and gas merger in over a decade, thereby making shell the largest producer of liquefied natural gas in the world. Implications of climate change for oil and gas impacts in the arctic. Arctic oil drilling is off so explorers head towards the. Companies are exploring for minerals and oil and gas reserves.
Unlike development and production the yearround process of constructing the necessary facilities and extracting oil and gas for delivery to market, exploration will happen only in summer, when the seas are mostly icefree. Government but in the chilly waters off southern australia, where the next stop is the antarctic, a busy oil. For norway, natural gas exploration in the barents sea is crucial to maintain current levels of production in the future. Offshore oil exploration and development in the arctic ocean would further compromise this effort. Norway has awarded 12 oil and gas exploration licences to equinor and 10 other companies focused mostly on the arctic, where oslo believes it has the greatest potential for significant new discoveries.
Greenlanders divided on arctic oil, gas exploration the fastchanging world is in cringing on the arctic. Most of the oil comes from the north slope, referring to the land adjacent to the chukchi and beaufort seas down to the brooks mountain range the area of. October 2014 the prospects and challenges for arctic oil development 2 between arctic states will be prerequisites for success. Of those five exploration wells, the oil giant only found between 25 and 50 million barrels of recoverable oil equivalents at the. Arctic oil and natural gas potential alaska resources library. Norway plans record number of arctic oil exploration blocks. In order to test the possibility of expanding the oil and gas exploration season for the north slope, the study analyzed the changes on tundra test plots as various vehicles were driven on the plots during various stages of tundra freeze up and snow conditions. Decision on oil and gas exploration in an arctic area. Exploration for oil and gas in offshore arctic waters is set to intensify as new technologies allow operators to drill safely in more remote areas, statoil ceo helge lund said thursday.
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