Oil and Gas Program in Alaska
Oil and gas development has shaped Alaska and its economy, with significant potential ahead for further growth and development. The BLM supports responsible development on Federal public lands through administration of the Federal onshore oil and gas leasing program and permitting geophysical exploration, drilling, and construction associated with oil and gas projects. This program currently covers three regions, stretching from Southcentral Alaska to the North Slope: the Cook Inlet Region on both sides of the Cook Inlet, the approximately 23-million-acre National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska (NPR-A), and the approximately 1.6-million-acre Coastal Plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR).
In Alaska, the BLM oversees the production of millions of cubic feet of natural gas and millions of barrels of oil annually. The Cook Inlet has four production units (Beaver Creek, Beluga River, Kenai, Swanson River) while the NPR-A has five (Bear Tooth, Mooses Tooth, Colville River, Horseshoe, Umiat). These units contribute significantly to America’s balance sheet, through annual lease rentals and royalties on oil and gas production that companies pay to the U.S. Treasury via the Department of the Interior’s Office of Natural Resource Revenue. These projects also generate revenue for the State of Alaska, which receives 90% of rents and royalties from leases in the Cook Inlet Region and 50% of the bonus bids, rents, and royalties from both the NPR-A and Coastal Plain.
COOK INLET: Onshore exploration and production in the Cook Inlet Region began in the 1950s, starting with Swanson River Unit. It was pivotal in demonstrating Alaska’s economic viability to become a state, and it continues to contribute to Alaska's economic and energy needs today. Natural gas produced from this region is a vital resource for Anchorage and communities across Southcentral Alaska. All gas-fired electric plants in Southcentral rely on Cook Inlet as their fuel source.
NPR-A: The 23-million-acre NPR-A is an important resource for meeting America's energy needs. The last lease sale in this area was held in 2019, and more lease sales are planned for the near future. The current period of exploration, which began in 1999, has resulted in the discovery and development of Colville Delta (CD) 5, Greater Mooses Tooth 1 and 2, as well as the Willow project (currently under construction, with first oil planned for 2029). There has been increasing interest in NPR-A in recent years, and the area still presents enormous opportunity for additional resource exploration and development. Discoveries in the Nanushuk and Torok formations have piqued interest as local and regional geology and geophysics are reexamined. These targets continue to fuel exploration and development opportunities (alongside other historical subsurface targets of interest) for the near future in NPR-A. Current discoveries and analysis indicate that there may be 8.7 billion barrels of recoverable oil and 25 trillion cubic feet of recoverable gas in known prospects of the reserve.
COASTAL PLAIN: For many decades, the Coastal Plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) has captured significant attention for its untapped oil and gas development potential. In 2017, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (Public Law 115-97) changed that, by directing the Secretary of the Interior, through the BLM, to establish and administer a competitive oil and gas program for the Coastal Plain and to offer at least two lease sales of at least 400,000 acres by December 2024. The Tax Act directed that the program be managed similar to the administration of lease sales under the Naval Petroleum Reserves Production Act of 1976. The first lease sale in the Coastal Plain was held on January 6, 2021, and received bids on 11 of 22 tracts. Under Executive Order 14153, "Unleashing Alaska's Extraordinary Resource Potential," the BLM is working to expand oil and gas leasing in this area and, with more lease sales planned for the near future.
BLM posts information on its lease sales in Alaska on its Alaska Oil and Gas Leasing Program webpage.
- Get current Alaska lease sale information
- Get national statistical information relating to oil and gas leasing on Federal lands, including BLM-administered oil and gas leases, applications for permit to drill, and oil and gas wells.
