Methane Hydrates on the North Slope

Methane hydrate is an ice-like solid in which methane is trapped in a lattice of water molecules. A 2011 field trial on Alaska’s North Slope, the Ignık Sikumi well, tested ways to produce methane from hydrate deposits under permafrost.[1]

Hydrate occurrence

The Department of Energy describes hydrate as occurring within and below thick Arctic permafrost and in the subsurface of most continental waters at depths of roughly 1,500 feet or more, and notes that many experts consider it a potentially vast global energy source. The release gives no quantitative estimate.[1]

The Ignık Sikumi trial

In May 2011 the Department of Energy announced that ConocoPhillips and the department’s National Energy Technology Laboratory had installed and fully instrumented the Ignık Sikumi gas hydrate field trial well on the North Slope. The name means fire in the ice in Iñupiaq. The main method under test was injecting carbon dioxide into sandstone reservoirs holding methane hydrate so that the carbon dioxide would replace the methane in the hydrate structure, storing carbon dioxide while releasing methane.[1]

Results and plans

Well data confirmed about 160 feet of gas-hydrate-bearing sand in four separate zones, matching predictions, and gave insight into the reservoirs’ physical and mechanical properties. Planned later work was a one to two month carbon dioxide injection and production programme, then up to 40 days of depressurisation testing before spring thaw, a method that had shown promise in short-term tests by Japan and Canada. Field experiments could begin as early as winter 2011 to 2012.[1]

FAQs

What is methane hydrate? An ice-like solid that traps methane in water molecules.

What does Ignık Sikumi mean? Fire in the ice, in Iñupiaq.

Who ran the trial? ConocoPhillips and the DOE National Energy Technology Laboratory.

Sources

1. U.S. Department of Energy: Newly Installed Alaska North Slope Well Will Test Innovative Hydrate Production Technologies

Editorially reviewed by Specialty Digest Editorial TeamLast reviewed November 14, 2026Researched and drafted with AI assistanceReport an issue