Innovation keeps north slope oil flowing: technology reduces costs, increases safety, yields results.

• Author: Stricker, Julie
• Position: OIL & GAS

Much has changed since oil was discovered at Prudhoe Bay in 1968. Since production began in 1977, constant technological innovation has resulted in more than 17 billion barrels of oil being carried through the trans-Alaska pipeline, far more than initial estimates predicted.

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Oil companies that once erected giant pieces of machinery to tap the oil directly below them are now able to drill laterally and access satellite deposits without changing their footprint on the fragile tundra. Advances in 3D seismic surveying allow companies to find and delineate petroleum-containing basins more precisely. And they're able to access more oil from each basin through enhanced oil recovery techniques such as large-scale gas cycling, gas injection, and coiled tubing drilling.

Technology is one method oil companies are able to use to yield more oil out of the ground safely, cost-efficiently, and with a reduced environmental footprint--and Alaska companies are leading the way.

All Projects Begin with Transportation

The first step to reducing costs and increasing efficiency starts far from the North Slope in Washington State. That's where almost all food, raw materials, and equipment needed in the oil fields begin their long trip north.

Matson is one of three major shippers serving Alaska, along with Saltchuk (which owns Tote Maritime) and Lynden (which owns Alaska Marine Lines and Lynden Transport). "Ultimately, we run a business in a region with some of the most extreme weather and tides effectively and efficiently," says Lindsey Whitt, manager of external affairs for Matson.

"For us, it all starts in Tacoma," Whitt says. "If there's something going to the North Slope, it would start from an order from the customer--maybe the product is made in Timbuktu, Ohio--it gets to Tacoma, and then we take it from Tacoma to Anchorage, and a freight forwarder would take it to the customer [on the] North Slope."

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Getting cargo from Tacoma to Alaska quickly and efficiently is a big part of the journey north, and over the forty years that Prudhoe Bay has been producing oil, shipping technology also evolved. Today, all cargo is automatically checked in and checked out from ports, and a program automates how the cargo is stacked, Whitt says.

Matson always knows exactly where its ships are in the delivery process, as well as exactly what each ship is carrying, thanks to cutting-edge technology.

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Matson's Tacoma operations are solely focused on Alaska, Whitt says. "Everything is automated and computerized, so every time we stack the ship, there's a specific computer program that is organizing what's going to Kodiak Island, what's going to Dutch, what needs to be off in Anchorage first."

Since Matson owns its own infrastructure at the Alaska ports, its ships are able to park immediately and begin unloading freight without having to schedule or wait for cranes.

"I guess one of the most obvious efficiencies is just being up to date with our infrastructure and our equipment--owning our infrastructure and equipment. And then of course we have technology with our website, mobile apps, checking-in technology, and tracking technology that all make things go smoothly," Whitt says.

Customers have access to an app that displays the current location of their shipments. And Matson continues to upgrade its technology, as well as its fleet. The company plans...