ANCHORAGE, Alaska—
State attorneys will appear before the Alaska Supreme Court on Wednesday to argue that a lower court judge incorrectly interpreted state law on how the Department of Natural Resources terminates undeveloped petroleum leases.The appeal is an offshoot of state efforts to terminate the production unit at Point Thompson, formed with leases held by ExxonMobil Corp. and other companies.
The state contends that Judge Sharon Gleason incorrectly ruled on state responsibilities when Point Thomson leaseholders refused to submit a development plan that could move leases into production.
She ordered the state to conduct a hearing to explain what leaseholders needed to do to correct their development plan problems.
State officials say such a hearing would reverse the roles in the regulator-leaseholder process and overturn measures in place since statehood.
