ATC Atlantic Coal

RNS No 3216r
ATLANTIC RICHFIELD COMPANY
5th August 1998


ARCO Alaska, Chevron USA Form North Slope Alliances

ANCHORAGE, Alaska, Aug 5 / -- ARCO Alaska, Inc. and Chevron USA Inc. announced 
today the signing of two agreements that will quicken the pace of oil
exploration in more than 2.8 million acres on Alaska's North Slope between the
Colville and Canning Rivers. 

The agreements provide for equal ownership of leases recently acquired in Alaska
State Lease Sale 87 and other leases on the North Slope of Alaska.  The first
agreement provides for joint exploration and appraisal of an approximate
4,000-square mile area including open acreage and leases acquired bx ARCO and
Chevron during Lease Sale 87.  Under the terms of the agreement, ARCO and
Chevron will each own a 50% interest in 35 tracts, representing approximately
200,000 total gross acres, located southwest of the existing Kuparuk and new
Alpine oil fields.  This includes 13 jointly acquired leases, in addition to
four tracts purchased by Chevron and 18 tracts acquired by ARCO at Lease Sale
87.  ARCO has been designated as exploration and development operator in the
agreement. 

A second alignment agreement encompasses the McCovey/Salmon area, which includes
196,000 offshore acres north of the Prudhoe Bay oil field in the Beaufort Sea.
Under the agreement, ARCO and Chevron will each have one-half interest in 16
tracts in this area.  ARCO has been designated as exploration and development
operator for the project. 

"We're pleased to partner with Chevron on new exploration and growth
opportunities," said ARCO Alaska President Kevin Meyers.  "We are looking
forward to continuing the cooperation shown by the joint ARCO-Chevron team that
prepared for Lease Sale 87. 

"We're pleased to be investing in Alaska and we enjoyed the opportunity to again
bid with ARCO for North Slope leases," Chevron Vice President Espy Price said.
"We see a lot of technical synergy between Chevron and ARCO."  

Meyers and Price also cited Lease Sale 87, the state's first areawide lease
sale, as an excellent example of how the state is working to encourage oil
exploration and development. 

ARCO and Chevron are already partners in the Hammerhead and Kuvlum units in the
Beaufort Sea northeast of the Prudhoe Bay oil field.  ARCO acquired these
federal leases in its merger with Union Texas Petroleum Holdings, Inc.  UTP is
now a wholly-owned subsidiary of ARCO. Chevron is the designated exploration and
development operator in the Hammerhead and Kuvlum units.  ARCO Alaska is a
subsidiary of Los Angeles-based ARCO (NYSE: ARC).

CONTACT: Dawn Patience of ARCO Alaska, Inc., 907-265-6134; or Dean O'Hair,
         425-497-5019, or Corry Woolington, 713-754-5612, both of Chevron USA,
         Inc.

         Web site: http://www.arco.com


END

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