Prudhoe Bay boosts March North Slope oil and gas production
Prudhoe Bay added 6,540 barrels a day in March, offsetting smaller gains elsewhere as North Slope flow stayed near the Trans Alaska Pipeline’s low-end era.
Prudhoe Bay carried March North Slope production, adding 6,540 barrels a day and reminding borough leaders how much of the region still rests on one aging hub. Total Alaska North Slope output averaged 460,555 barrels per day, up 1,448 barrels a day, or 0.32%, from February, but still below the March 2025 average.
Hilcorp Alaska-operated Prudhoe Bay averaged 249,416 barrels per day in March. Inside that total, crude averaged 201,488 barrels per day and natural gas liquids averaged 47,928 barrels per day. The rest of the North Slope moved in smaller increments: Nikaitchuq and Oooguruk both rose slightly from February, Northstar edged up only marginally and Endicott also ticked higher. The pattern shows a production base that is improving in places, but still depends heavily on Prudhoe’s weight.
That matters well beyond the pad. North Slope production feeds the Trans Alaska Pipeline System, which averaged 461,294 barrels per day in March, up from 459,455 barrels per day in February. Even with the increase, March flow remained close to an era of lower throughput, after TAPS averaged 462,821 barrels per day in 2025, its all-time low annual average. For oilfield contractors, freight haulers, marine support and maintenance crews, those small swings affect how much work is available and where it concentrates.
The fiscal stakes are just as direct. The North Slope Borough’s FY 2026-2027 operating budget projected $559,278,406 in revenues, and the mayor’s budget letter again pointed to property tax revenues based on assessed values and the statutory tax cap as a primary funding source. When field performance improves, even modestly, it helps stabilize the pipeline of money that supports borough operations, local services and long-range planning in communities from Barrow to the eastern line of the borough.
March weather also underscored how tightly the economy is tied to Arctic conditions. North Slope temperature averaged -10.8 degrees Fahrenheit, 0.6 degrees below the 100-year mean of -10.2 degrees, in a county time series that dates to 1925. That cold remains part of the operating reality for Prudhoe Bay and every other field, even as the broader outlook from the Alaska Department of Revenue and the U.S. Energy Information Administration points to more production ahead. The state forecast sees Alaska North Slope output averaging 457,000 barrels per day in FY 2026 before rising to 517,800 in FY 2027, while the federal outlook says Alaska crude production could grow 13% in 2026, helped by projects such as Nuna, which began producing in December 2024 and is expected to peak at 20,000 barrels per day.
Know something we missed? Have a correction or additional information?
Submit a Tip
