Development plans approved for Alaska’s Willow project

The US government has approved development plans for ConocoPhillips’ Willow project in Alaska, the U.S. Department of the Interior announced on Monday.

The project’s scope has been reduced to three well pads as opposed to five in its proposal, which will eliminate the need to construct around 17.7 kilometres of road, 32.2 kilometres of pipelines and 538,000 square metres of gravel.

Around 600 million boe are expected to be delivered over the life of the project. The development is expected to produce 180,000 bopd at top capacity.

Production is set to begin in 2029.

The government also relinquished rights to 275 square kilometres of existing leases within the north and south of the Bear Tooth unit in the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska area from ConocoPhillips, including 241 square kilometres in the Teshekpuk Lake Special Area.

In July 2022, the US Bureau of Land Management issued a supplemental environmental impact statement that put the possibility of ConocoPhillips’ project in Alaska back in the picture following the court throwing out approval of the project in August 2021.