This week’s Power The Future Energy Hour – the first of 2021 – focused on upcoming political sessions in Washington, D.C. and Juneau. Rick opened the show by talking about the next day’s ANWR 1002 lease sale, and opined that the sale would go through (US District Court Judge Sharon Gleason had not yet ruled – ultimately allowing it to move forward) and it would have some activity, although not to the extent he hoped.  He noted that the Biden administration was supposed to close down ANWR on day one of his administration, but for today, it should be a…

It may not have generated the money hoped for when ANWR was opened by Congress in 2017, but today’s successful completion of the first lease sale in the 1002 area of the refuge will one day bring jobs to Alaskans and revenues to local, state and federal coffers. Today’s announcement that eleven tracts of land on the western half of the 1002 area were bid on was historical on many levels. There is much work to be done before oil from ANWR flows down the Trans-Alaska Pipeline to Valdez.  Given the radical “green” (read, anti-jobs) agenda being pushed on America…

The all-out attack on America’s energy workers may very well begin on January 20, 2021.  But for the last 24-plus hours, Alaskans who care about jobs and our state’s economy have been able to celebrate two significant decisions. The first happened on Monday, when the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) finalized its plans to allow for exploration and development on millions more acres in the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska (NPR-A). The second happened late Tuesday, when US District Court Judge Sharon Gleason denied a request to halt the first lease sale in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) 1002 area.  Gleason’s…

As we get ready to turn the calendar to 2021, PTF Alaska State Director, Rick Whitbeck, looks back at the top energy-related stories of the year in the Great Land.  The world was turned on its head in early 2020, as COVID-19 made its way to America’s shores and life as we knew it changed dramatically.  As Americans “hunkered down” to slow its spread, transportation slowed to a crawl, affecting oil and gas demand, among other things. The fallout from the pandemic hit America’s energy workers especially hard.  Nationwide, producers shut down projects, companies went bankrupt and tens of thousands…

This week’s Power The Future Energy Hour – the last of 2020 – focused on both the past and the future. Rick opened the show by talking about the top five stories of 2020, as they related to Alaska’s energy community.  The top three are being blogged about this week on PowerTheFuture.com.  The stories were: #5 – The Biden energy plan and its potential impact on Alaska; #4 – The Pebble Record of Decision debacle; #3 – Hilcorp closing the BP acquisition; #2 – COVID-19’s effect on our energy jobs, and #1 – ANWR finally opens with a lease sale….

As we get ready to turn the calendar to 2021, PTF Alaska State Director Rick Whitbeck looks back at the top energy-related stories of the year in the Great Land.  The August 2019 announcement that BP would be exiting Alaska and selling its assets to Hilcorp was huge news.  After more than a year of hearings, public comment periods and various attacks from anti-development zealots – looking to scuttle the purchase and keep the oil and gas in the ground and kill jobs for over 1,000 workers – Hilcorp prevailed and received final approvals for the purchase on December 15th….

When this summer’s COVID-19 HEROES Act relief bill was passed, New Mexico Congresswoman Deb Haaland wasn’t happy. To Haaland, a member of the Pueblo Nation, an injustice against “real” tribes was included in the Act, when some of the $8 billion was earmarked for Alaska Natives, through their federally-established Alaska Regional Corporations. “We’re holding the Trump administration accountable for the blatant mismanaging of funding included for tribes,” Haaland said on a live broadcast hosted by The Appeal. “It was clear they attempted to put corporations ahead of sovereign governments, and that delayed the funding.” Haaland’s barefaced attack on Alaska’s indigenous…

Anyone familiar with Joe Biden’s presidential campaign website knows that he promised aggressive actions in a number of policy areas on day one of his potential presidency. One area he focused on was stopping federal oil and gas lease sales and drilling on federal lands and in federal waters.  His website says to expect Executive Orders (EOs) for those, as part of his commitment to supporters to implement a transition away from traditional energy sources. A study published this week, by University of Wyoming Professor of Energy Economics, Dr. Timothy J Considine, took those Biden promised EOs and modeled their…

As election results continue to be disputed on a federal level, this week’s Power The Future Energy Hour, hosted by Alaska State Director Rick Whitbeck, began to break down the changes Alaska could see with an administration change in January. After an opening segment where he shared his thoughts on a 9th Circuit Court of Appeals decision that impacted Hilcorp’s Liberty project, he spoke with Daniel Turner, Power The Future’s founder and Executive Director, in segment two.  They discussed the hypocrisy of the eco-Left as it relates to moving to “green” energy without using domestic mined materials.  Daniel also noted…