Naval Petroleum Reserve No. 1: an assessment of production alternatives

Technical Report · Mon Jul 30 04:00:00 EDT 1984

OSTI ID:6466349

Under existing legislation, every 3 years the President must decide whether to shut-in or continue production of the Naval Petroleum Reserve No. 1 (NPR-1) oil field at Elk Hills, California. The current authorization for production expires on April 5, 1985. GAO discusses the geologic, budgetary, local economic, and national security implications of three production alternatives for NPR-1: continued production, shut-in, and partial shut in. In addition, GAO discusses the advantages and disadvantages of establishing a Defense Petroleum Reserve, a crude oil reserve for the military, using part of the revenues from continued production at NPR-1 to fund it. During the course of its review, GAO found that production rates at Elk Hills may be too high, causing problems within the reserve that could decrease ultimate recovery of oil by about 139 million barrels. The Department of Energy plans to analyze this situation and, if need be, adjust the rate. 2 figures, 2 tables.

• Research Organization: General Accounting Office, Washington, DC (USA). Resources, Community and Economic Development Div.
• OSTI ID: 6466349
• Report Number(s): GAO/RCED-84-180; ON: TI85900097
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

02 PETROLEUM
020100 -- Petroleum-- Reserves-- (-1989)
020300 -- Petroleum-- Drilling & Production
29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY
294002* -- Energy Planning & Policy-- Petroleum
CALIFORNIA
DECISION MAKING
ENERGY SOURCES
EVALUATION
EXPLOITATION
FEDERAL REGION IX
FOSSIL FUELS
FUELS
GEOLOGIC DEPOSITS
INCOME
MINERAL RESOURCES
NAVAL PETROLEUM RESERVE
NORTH AMERICA
PETROLEUM
PETROLEUM DEPOSITS
PRODUCTION
PRODUCTIVITY
RESERVES
RESOURCES
USA