Top business stories of 2016.

• Position: BUSINESS

Compiled by ABM Staff

Alaska has had a tumultuous year in 2016 and Alaska Business Monthly has shared many of the top stories in its magazine and on its website throughout the year. We've compiled a sampling to share with our readers. Many of the stories are from the northernmost reaches of the state and are preludes to big changes coming to the last frontier.

As of December 1, America's northernmost community, previously known as Barrow, has a different name--residents voted 381 to 375 to change the name to Utqiagvik, the Inupiaq word meaning "a place for gathering wild roots." On October 27, Lieutenant Governor Byron Mallot approved the change and made it official. For more than a thousand years, the community is said to have been known as Ukpiagvik, the Inupiaq word for "a place for hunting snowy owls." The name change reflects the community's desire to recoup and preserve its Alaska Native language, an action that may lead to more changes in 2017.

In more news of the community, Arctic Slope Regional Corporation was named the No. 1 Top 49er by Alaska Business Monthly for the twenty-second time, this year on 2015 gross revenues of more than $2.5 billion. The company is headquartered in Utqiagvik, as is the No. 9 Top 49er, Ukpeagvik Inupiat Corporation. See the October issue of Alaska Business Monthly for all of this year's Top 49ers.

Not too far away, more top stories emerged on the North Slope.

Caelus Confirms Large-Scale Discovery

Caelus Energy Alaska, LLC announced that its subsidiary, Caelus Energy Alaska Smith Bay LLC, made a significant light oil discovery on its Smith Bay state leases on the North Slope of Alaska.

Based on two wells drilled in early 2016 as well as 126 square miles of existing 3D seismic, Caelus estimates the oil in place under the current leasehold to be 6 billion barrels. Furthermore, the Smith Bay fan complex may contain upwards of 10 billion barrels of oil in place when the adjoining acreage is included.

The Smith Bay development has the potential to provide 200,000 barrels per day of light, highly mobile oil which would both increase Trans Alaska Pipeline System (TAPS) throughput volumes and reduce the average viscosity of oil in the pipeline, extending its long-term viability.

Caelus is currently planning an appraisal program which will enable Caelus to confirm reservoir continuity, optimize future drilling locations, and ultimately increase reserves, caleusenergy.com

ConocoPhillips Sets Alaska Drilling Record

ConocoPhillips Alaska Inc. announced September 29 that it achieved a drilling record for Alaska at drill site CD5 in the Colville River Unit (Alpine) on Alaska's North Slope. CD5 is the first commercial oil development on Alaska Native lands within the boundaries of the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska (NPR-A).

Doyon Rig 19 drilled a horizontal injection well 26,196 feet, a record for overall measured length of a well for the state. The well was drilled to a true vertical depth of approximately 7,400 feet and had a horizontal leg of 17,228 feet. The well took twenty-four days to drill and encountered Alpine "A" sands.

ConocoPhillips Alaska announced in April that funding had been approved for additional wells and associated on-pad infrastructure at the CD5 drill site. The additional wells and infrastructure will bring CD5 to its full permitted well capacity. CD5 is exceeding its original production target of 16,000 BOPD gross and is currently producing...