Exxon taps into Point Thomson gas field

ANCHORAGE, Alaska, Feb. 9 (UPI) -- U.S. supermajor Exxon Mobil announced it drilled its first development well at the Point Thomson gas field on Alaska's North Slope.

Exxon Mobil and its partners at TransCanada view gas reserves at Point Thomson as a boon to their efforts to build a pipeline from the North Slope to markets in the Lower 48.

"This is another successful milestone for the Point Thomson project," said Dale Pittman, ExxonMobil Alaska production manager.

Point Thomson holds an estimated 8 trillion cubic feet of natural gas and roughly 200 million barrels of condensate. Exxon said the field was "critical" to its plans for the natural gas pipeline.

Executives said the development well at Point Thomson, the first for the company, "pushed the limits of drilling technology and demonstrated that the Point Thomson drilling plan is sound."

In January Exxon Mobil President Rich Kruger told delegates at the 2010 Meet Alaska Conference in Anchorage that developing Point Thomson would help meet regional demands. He said he expects energy demand to be roughly 35 percent higher in 2030 than it was in 2005. Demand for natural gas, meanwhile, is expected to be 55 percent higher than 2005 levels.

Consumers, he said, will make cleaner-burning natural gas "the fuel of choice," putting Alaska in "an enviable position" to emerge as a regional energy supplier.

Exxon added it built a 60-mile ice road to Point Thomson for the movement of heavy equipment and material.