North Slope of Alaska Play Fairway Scale Three Dimensional Petroleum Systems Model Based Unconventional Resource Development Planning Edward A. Duncan Great Bear Petroleum, Anchorage, Alaska

Edward Duncan

The Brookian foreland basin of North Alaska holds three high quality, regionally extensive source rock formations, the Triassic Shublik, Jurassic Kingak and Cretaceous Lower Hue/HRZ. These formations lie within a 750 meter thick stratigraphic interval with varying geochemical and geomechanical characteristics. All three source rock units are oil prone but exhibit varying degrees of thermal maturity and expected resident hydrocarbon phase due primarily to differences in burial depth. Produced hydrocarbon phases will vary from black oil to dry gas across the various play fairways. The Shublik Formation, the proven dominant oil source rock in the basin, is a regionally extensive, fossiliferous, organically rich, complex facies assemblage of phosphatic and calcareous shales and localized sands. The Shublik appears to be extensively naturally fractured. The Kingak and Lower Hue/HRZ are more typical, deep marine, condensed section facies assemblages that include calcareous shales and fine sand/siltstone rich zones with less natural fracturing than the Shublik. Development planning, considering the interval thickness, geochemical and geomechanical characteristics of the targeted units and mixed hydrocarbon phase of resultant production suggests deployment of multi-faceted drilling and completion technologies. Simultaneous operations will utilize multi-lateral horizontal and vertical well bores, multi-stage fracture stimulations of unconventional reservoirs and conventional completions of less challenged zones of interest. Multi-faceted development scenario planning, utilizing the integrative and predictive power of a large scale, three dimensional petroleum systems model for individual reservoir and combined reservoir volumetric, hydrocarbon phase and pore pressure prediction will drive drilling and completion planning. This coupled with ground surface operations provides a platform for testing and proposing high confidence exploration and development scenarios aimed at minimizing finding and development costs.

AAPG Search and Discovery Article #90177©3P Arctic, Polar Petroleum Potential Conference & Exhibition, Stavanger, Norway, October 15-18, 2013