Winter drilling program in Alaska petroleum preserve can proceed, judge rules
January 28, 2026
A federal judge has refused to block a winter oil and gas exploration project in the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska that opponents said was improperly analyzed by the federal government. U.S. District Court Judge Sharon Gleason denied a request by conservation groups and an Iñupiat-aligned group that sought to halt ConocoPhillips Alaska’s planned exploration program until the groups’ legal challenge to the program’s authorization by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management was resolved. The program includes plans to drill four exploration wells. The company’s pursuits in the petroleum reserve also include the large Willow oil project that was approved in 2023.