ENERGY

Arco to Spend $600 Million on Alaska Exploration: Arco will spend $600 million in the next five years on oil and gas exploration in Alaska, a company official told lawmakers in Juneau. Arco expects the industry to drill 15 to 25 exploration wells in the state this year, said Jim Davis, the company’s senior vice president of exploration and land. Arco plans to participate in 75% to 80% of the projects, Davis said. “If the oil industry is to remain healthy in the long term, we must continue to explore for new sources of oil, and we must be successful,” Davis said.