Alaska’s production outlook is shifting for the first time in nearly a decade, with the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) on Wednesday projecting that North Slope crude output will rise by some 13% next year as two large fields move into high-volume phases. This would mark the strongest annual increase since the 1980s and a rare break from the long decline that has steadily reduced throughput on the Trans-Alaska Pipeline (TAPS). The agency ties the anticipated jump to new wells and extended-reach drilling tied to major North…