State proposes giving North Slope Borough 583 Kuparuk acres, keeping roads and pipelines

The Alaska Department of Natural Resources proposed Thursday to give the North Slope Borough about 583 acres in the Kuparuk oil field. The state would keep about 185 acres that hold oil field roads, part of the Kuparuk Operations Center and three pipeline rights-of-way.

The borough had selected about 768 acres beside the Ugnuravik River, about 28 miles west of Deadhorse and next to the Ugnu-Kuparuk Airport. The preliminary decision would transfer about 35 acres in Section 8, 253 acres in Section 16 and 295 acres in Section 17. The state would keep all of Section 9.

The borough would receive the surface only. The state would keep the oil, gas and other minerals, and four active oil and gas leases held by ConocoPhillips Alaska in the Kuparuk River Unit would stay in place. The borough could not dispose of the land until it is surveyed, at the borough's expense.

Several state offices objected during review. The Northern Regional Office objected to giving up Mine Site C, a gravel pit that has produced more than 12 million cubic yards. "Retention of this pit is critical so the State can ensure continued availability of material for oilfield development," the office wrote. Division of Oil and Gas permitting staff objected to the whole selection, naming part of the operations center, its runway and the stretch of spine road that is the only route for operations to the west. Resource assessment staff recommended transferring only Sections 16 and 17. The pipeline coordinator asked to keep the pipeline rights-of-way for their rent and for oversight.

The decision still transfers the part of Section 8 with no infrastructure, so the borough can reach its land in Sections 16 and 17 without using the section line easement through the gravel source. The borough dropped the part of its selection holding Mine Site C in 2023, and the pit stays with the state. The department's Land Conveyance Section concluded the state's interest in keeping the land does not outweigh the borough's interest in getting it.

The public notice lists 538 acres, but the decision lists 583. The final size will be set by survey.

The borough has about 64,533 acres left of the 89,850 it was granted in 1972.

Written comments are due by 4:30 pm Tuesday, Nov. 24. Only people who comment by the deadline can appeal. If nothing significant changes, the decision becomes final without further notice.