Kuparuk oil field
Encyclopedia
The Kuparuk oil field, located in North Slope Borough
, Alaska
, United States
, is the second largest oil field in North America by area. It produces approximately of oil and is estimated to have 2 Goilbbl of recoverable oil reserves. It is named for the Kuparuk River
.
Kuparuk was discovered by Sinclair Oil
in April 1969 at the Ugnu Number 1 well, named for the nearby Ugnuravik River. Production was first announced by ARCO
in 1979 and planned to start in 1982. Production actually began December 13, 1981 on 5 small gravel drilling pads. Production was expected to peak in 1986 at 250000 oilbbl/d, but did not peak until 1992 at 322000 oilbbl/d.
North Slope Borough, Alaska
-National protected areas:* Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge ** Cape Lisburne** Cape Thompson* Arctic National Wildlife Refuge ** Mollie Beattie Wilderness * Gates of the Arctic National Park and Preserve...
, Alaska
Alaska
Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, is the second largest oil field in North America by area. It produces approximately of oil and is estimated to have 2 Goilbbl of recoverable oil reserves. It is named for the Kuparuk River
Kuparuk River
The Kuparak River is a river in Alaska's North Slope. The Eskimo name was shown on a manuscript map drawn in 1901 by S. J. Marsh, prospector, who spelled it Koopowra and which he translated as Big River ....
.
Kuparuk was discovered by Sinclair Oil
Sinclair Oil
Sinclair Oil Corporation is an American petroleum corporation, founded by Harry F. Sinclair on May 1, 1916 as the Sinclair Oil & Refining Corporation by combining the assets of 11 small petroleum companies. Originally a New York corporation, Sinclair Oil reincorporated in Wyoming in 1976...
in April 1969 at the Ugnu Number 1 well, named for the nearby Ugnuravik River. Production was first announced by ARCO
ARCO
Atlantic Richfield Company is an oil company with operations in the United States as well as in Indonesia, the North Sea, and the South China Sea. It has more than 1,300 gas stations in the western part of the United States. ARCO was originally formed by the merger of East Coast-based Atlantic...
in 1979 and planned to start in 1982. Production actually began December 13, 1981 on 5 small gravel drilling pads. Production was expected to peak in 1986 at 250000 oilbbl/d, but did not peak until 1992 at 322000 oilbbl/d.