Beefed-up tanker fleets readied for N. Slope oil

Preparations are progressing to receive Prudhoe crude: 600,000 bbl/day in mid-1977 and 1.2 million bbl/day in late 1977. Shipyards on the East Coast, the Gulf Coast, and the West Coast have been adding to their domestic fleets. Two of the three principal owners of Prudhoe Bay crude have been the biggest investors in new tanker capacity. Standard Oil Co. (Ohio), which will be responsible for moving half the crude, will eventually have nearly 1,400,000 dwt of capacity available to it through new construction. Atlantic Richfield Co., with about one-fifth of the field, will have 900,000 dwt available in vessels recently built or on order. Exxon Co., U.S.A., which owns the same amount of crude as ARCO, will draw on its existing domestic fleet to meet its tankering requirements. Other oil companies, joined by tanker companies, will add several hundred thousand more tons to the total. (MCW)