The Alaska Department of Natural Resources Division of Oil and Gas has approved Furie Operating Alaska’s plan for 2019, allowing the company to continue exploratory drilling in the Cook Inlet.
The company’s operating plan, known as Kitchen Lights Unit 6th Plan of Development and Operations, lays out Furie’s plans to continue drilling throughout the 83,394-acre unit in the Northern Cook Inlet. The company has committed to drilling and acquiring a new development well from the Julius R. Platform and continue operations on two other wells.
The plan was approved Dec. 11.
In a release from the Department of Natural Resources, the company also states that by February 2019, “It will mature two prospects for exploration wells outside the Corsair Block and present them to DNR along with evidence that commercially reasonable efforts are underway to drill these wells in either 2019 or 2020.”
The Division of Oil and Gas approved the formation of the Kitchen Unit in 2007 and the expansion to the Kitchen Lights Unit in 2009. Over the course of that time, the department “determined Furie failed to meet its drilling and development commitments over the course of several POD (Plan of Development and Operations) periods,” according to a release for the DNR.
As of Oct. 24, the company has complied with the requirements, including the completion of a well, development of another and quarterly reports. According to the DNR, the default has been cured.
