For a while I was working at a job that took me to the North Slope of Alaska, and I had a blog about it (http://northernoil.wordpress.com/). That blog has become rather moribund, so I moved most of it over to this blog, but there was a fair amount of interest in it. This photo page is for people to get an idea what the North Slope looks like. More photos can be found at the Prudhoeman blog site, or here for photos of Kuparuk.
GC-2
Gathering Center 2 (GC-2) on the west side of Prudhoe Bay.
GC-2 and OT-21
Another shot of GC-2. The OT-21 transit line that leaked in March 2006 and shut down the field is seen on the left of the photo.
Kuparuk Well House
Because of the weather (read: damn cold), the well heads are enclosed in well houses. This one is at Kuparuk.
Inside Well House at Pad 2-C
Here’s an inside shot of the above well house.
Ice Road to Tarn Prospect, Kuparuk Field
Everybody is interested in ice roads. This is the ice road to the Tarn Prospect, with the exploration well in the background. More pictures of ice roads are on a separate page, here.
Alpine Exploration Well
In the summer the ice roads melt away. Here’s the aftermath of an exploration well at Alpine. Winter exploration using ice roads leaves little long-term impact on the tundra. Production wells are a different matter.
Caribou Crossing
This is a caribou crossing where the pipelines are buried to allow caribou to cross over. The tracks in the foreground were made by caribou. These crossings are also the source of more than their share of corrosion and spills.
Pipelines
Here’s the new state-required marking on pipelines. From the left, crude oil (sales), incoming seawater, outgoing seawater, and gas lift.
Pipeline Installation
Laying insulated aboveground pipe on the vertical support members (VSM). The pipe is laid in saddles that allow for pipe movement on the cross-beams.
Seawater Treatment Plant
Here’s the seawater treatment plant. Seawater is filtered, treated, and then injected down hole to help keep reservoir pressures up.
This page has the following sub pages.
[...] North Alaskan Slope Blog [...]
I am interested in the Liberty Project, The drilling rig artical is very educational. I thought the Exxon
Point Thomson rig is huge. Are they simular?
Is the gas pressure is higher at Point Thomson?
BP is the owner operator, do you know what company is doing the logistics?
Jack – The Point Thompson and Liberty drill rigs are similar design, except that the rig for Liberty will be more powerful. I’m not exactly sure the horsepower of the rigs used for Point Thompson, but the Liberty rig will be significantly more powerful than any existing rigs on the slope.
As fare as who is doing the logistics – I don’t know. In the past BP has contracted with one or more of the native corporations.
Dear Prudhoeman,
Great photos and a very invormative website. I’m doing some Alaska exploration work and request your permission to use some of the photos as examples of operations, footprint, etc.
thank you kindly,
Terry
These photos are all either my own or, as far as I know, are in the public domain. Feel free to use them.
To Prudhoe bay
The conditions for this day were very different to yesterday. The weather started wet and stayed that way. Many “moments” were experienced when the surface changed either to deep gravel or to slurry near roadwork. Arriving , we were exhausted as the journey took total concentration. We’re are here for a day and then we do it all again.
The countryside is beautiful, exactly like your photos prudhoe man, but continually changing.
Whilst at Prudhoe Bay, we toured the site and went for a swim in the arctic. Being 300 miles inside the artic circle the temperature was about 3C during the day. Sometimes you could stand outside in a T shirt but if the wind was blowing, a few minuttes is all you could handle.
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posted by joanna jones of massage casual in anchorage