Prudhoe

After securing pledges of commitment to the Alaska LNG project from North Slope producers BP plc and ConocoPhillips, Gov. Bill Walker has dropped his plan to introduce legislation to create a reserves tax during a special session of the state legislature now in progress.

With their state in the midst of a revenue crisis stemming from shut in of production from the Prudhoe Bay oilfield, Alaska lawmakers approved the biggest rewrite of oil and gas tax policy in decades, which proponents say will pump billions more into state coffers and help pave the way for development of bountiful North Slope natural gas reserves.

Net quarterly losses were reported by ConocoPhillips, in its first financial report since completing its merger, and Amerada Hess last Thursday, putting downward pressure on major oil shares. Hess shares fell more than 11% to $58.54 by mid afternoon, while ConocoPhillips shares were down only about 2% to $47.20 because the charges were expected and its results from continuing operations were in line with Wall Street forecasts.