ConocoPhillips (COP) will move forward with the development of the Willow project in Alaska. This Final Investment Decision approves the project and funds construction needed to reach the first oil. The decision follows the Department of the Interior’s March 2023 Record of Decision and recent positive court orders, including this week’s Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals denial of plaintiffs’ request for an injunction.
According to the Bureau of Land Management, the Willow project is projected to deliver USD 8bn to USD 17bn in new revenue for the federal government, the state of Alaska, and Alaska Native communities. When completed, Willow is estimated to produce approximately 600 million barrels across the lifetime of the project, decreasing American dependence on foreign energy supplies. Designed to support and coexist with subsistence activities on Alaska’s North Slope, the Willow project underwent five years of rigorous regulatory and environmental review. Willow will be built using materials primarily made and sourced in the U.S. and has the potential to create over 2,500 construction jobs and approximately 300 long-term jobs.
