Hydrocarbon potential, geologic hazards, and infrastructure for exploration and development of the lower Cook Inlet, Alaska

Abstract

The lower Cook Inlet Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) includes 9,100 square kilometres (3,500 sq. mi.) of submerged land in less than 200 metres (660 ft.) of water 150 to 350 kilometres (95 to 220 mi.) southwest of Anchorage, Alaska. This area could contain from 0.3 to 1.4 billion barrels of oil and from 0.6 to 2.7 trillion cubic feet of natural gas depending upon the statistical confidence level indicated. The geology of this submerged area is extrapolated from onshore data. The exposed sedimentary rocks are as old as Late Paleozoic-Triassic and as young as Quaternary. Late Paleozoic through Early Jurassic rocks form the basal complex and include volcanics, volcaniclastics, and marine clastic sediments. Middle Jurassic through Cretaceous strata consist of marine sedimentary rocks. Tertiary rocks, from which the oi-1 and gas in upper Cook Inlet are produced, consist of nonmarine conglomerate, sandstone, siltstone, and coal. The potential objective section for oil and gas in the lower Cook Inlet OCS area ranges in age from Middle Jurassic through the Tertiary. The present structural configuration of this area is a northeasttrending trough filled with Tertiary sedimentary rocks. The trough The reservoir of available skilled is relatively small due to the low population density and distance Mexico, North Sea, or other manpower in the Alaska area from significant industrial centers. Skilled manpower and manpower available for training is available in the Pacific Northwest and California.