News
Alaska oil producers squeezed more oil out of the North Slope in 2022
In a rare feat, oil production on Alaska’s North Slope increased slightly in 2022. The giant oil patch has seen dwindling production for decades, with its primary field at Prudhoe Bay aging. But the Slope remains a key part of Alaska’s economy.
Related Knowledge Center: Arctic energy development
State of Play
The Arctic region of the United States has been both an important source of crude oil and the subject of unending political debate because of that oil.
The Prudhoe Bay oil field, along Alaska’s northern coast, for years accounted for about 20 percent of the nation’s oil production. Because of that production, the industry and its allies long have advocated exploration in the coastal plain of Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, about 65 miles east of Prudhoe.