Oil companies Exxon Mobil Corp , BP Plc and Conoco Phillips have reached a settlement with the state of Alaska that will allow the companies to build a pipeline from a North Slope natural gas field, the Wall Street Journal reported on Friday.

Production from the field would be shipped through the pipeline to a planned facility on Alaska's south coast that would enable the companies to turn the gas into liquefied natural gas, allowing the companies to reach overseas markets.

Alaska has previously threatened to revoke the companies' leases in the region because they have only recently moved to drill there despite holding the properties for decades.

The companies did not immediately respond to requests to confirm the report.

(Reporting By Matt Daily; Editing by Gerald E. McCormick)

Settlement