Abstract: Alaska Exploration Potential

T. H. Neel

Alaska and its adjacent continental shelf contain a major part of America's remaining oil and gas potential. The geologic promise of this vast area is enormous. There are at least 10 virgin basins on the outer continental shelf, and most onshore basins, although exciting, are still in the early stages of exploration. That these areas remain untested in spite of industry success in the Upper Cook Inlet and on the North Slope, is attributable to a lack of land to explore. Most of the onshore lands were frozen from January 1967 until early 1972, awaiting resolution of the Alaskan Native Claims. There has never been a Federal OCS sale off Alaska. Fortunately for Alaskan explorationists and for the nation, this impediment appears to be lifting.

Since 1972 seven native corporations have signed exploration agreements with various oil companies. These cover many millions of acres and involve seismic and drilling commitments. The real promise, however, lies in the OCS. The federal government in its accelerated OCS leasing program plans to have nine major lease sales off Alaska's shores in the next 3 years. Most of these areas have hostile environments which will hinder or complicate operations, but each is an exciting exploration province. All but two of the offered areas are Tertiary clastic basins. Onshore exposures generally are remote and limited making it challenging to define an objective section. Many basins have only minimal seismic coverage. If the sales are held any time close to the schedule, Alaska will be one of the world's most active exploration areas.

AAPG Search and Discovery Article #90976©1976 AAPG-SEPM-SEG Pacific Section Meeting, San Francisco, California