You’ve heard the comments about Alaska.  That it is a frozen landscape.  That it is dark all of the time.  That Alaskans live in igloos and run dogsleds instead of cars. Well, at this time of the year, the vast majority of the state is covered in ice and snow, and daylight ranges from just under nine hours a day in Ketchikan to 24-hour darkness above the Arctic Circle, so there is some truth to the rumors. Which begs the question:  If the eco-Left got its way and we did away with fossil fuel-driven electricity and heat, and we lived…

This week, the US Energy Information Administration (EIA) announced its short-term energy outlook.  One item of note related to the record exports for liquified natural gas (LNG) in November.  Per the outlook: “EIA estimates that the United States exported 9.4 Bcf/d of LNG in November—the most for any month on record. International spot and forward LNG prices continued to increase in late November, supported by reduced global LNG supply because of outages at LNG export plants in several countries and reported congestion at the Panama Canal, which affected westbound U.S. LNG exports to Asia. EIA expects LNG demand to continue…

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…

No matter the positive impact President Trump has had with appointing federal judges under his administration, it seems the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals continues to make decisions that hurt Alaska’s energy workers. The latest example?  Its decision Monday to side with eco-extremists and suspended Hilcorp’s ability to move forward with its Liberty project on Alaska’s North Slope.  Calling the actions taken by the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management to approve Hilcorp’s plans “arbitrary and capricious”, the three-judge panel effectively ruled that polar bears are more important than jobs. Aside from the obvious impact on jobs, the ruling halts production…

On this week’s Power The Future Energy Hour, Alaska State Director Rick Whitbeck focused on last week’s Record of Decision (RoD) by the US Army Corps of Engineers to deny a permit to the Pebble Mine to move forward with its development plans in Southwest Alaska. After an opening segment where he shared his thoughts on the decision, calling it a political hit-job on what should have been a non-political process, he spoke with Daniel Turner, Power The Future’s founder and Executive Director, in segment two.  They focused on potential President-elect Biden’s call for a “green” energy revolution, and how…

When Congress authorized the opening of the 10-02 Section of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) in 2017, and President Trump signed the action into law, the screams of the eco-Left were heard from near and far. After all, the feelings-over-facts arguments made by the leave-it-in-the-ground radicals had focused on preserving the Refuge for decades.  Hundreds of millions of dollars had been spent on fearmongering ads to show how responsible drilling of the area set aside by Congress in the 1970s for development would inevitably devastate wildlife, flora and fauna. Opponents have kept up their tactics these past few years,…

As documented in Attachment B of this ROD, I have determined that the proposed discharge does not comply with the 404 (b)(1) Guidelines because the proposed project will result in significant degradation of the aquatic ecosystem. I have concluded that the benefits of the proposed elimination and alteration of wetlands, streams and other waters within the USACE jurisdiction do not outweigh the detriments that would be caused by such eliminations and alterations, based upon the information contained with the FEIS, the extensive public comments received, and the analysis of the public interest review factors. As those eliminations and alterations would…

Two years ago this week, I had my first substantive conversation with Daniel Turner, Power The Future’s founder and Executive Director, about coming to work for his organization. A lot has happened since then. In the last 22 months since I started with PTF, we’ve focused our efforts in this great state on advocating for Alaska’s energy community.  Through activism and education, we’ve helped advance appreciation, understanding and support for Alaska’s leading employment and economic sectors.  2020 brought significant challenges to our state and nation, but Alaska’s energy community persevered.  Recent news of renewed drilling operations on the Slope, TAPS…

On last night’s Power The Future Energy Hour, Alaska State Director Rick Whitbeck caught up with Dave Stieren, the Director of Community Relations for the Office of Alaska’s Governor, Mike Dunleavy. Dave just recently returned from a 25th Anniversary celebration trip to Hawaii, and he and Rick discussed what he saw during his time in Kona, with regard to economic recovery and the impact COVID-19 has had on Hawaii’s tourism-based economy. Dave noted, “You walk around there and…it is an ‘in-your-face’ reminder of what a lack of economic activity…does”, as long-time businesses are shuttered, with many never to re-open. Talk…

If you listened to the howls of the eco-extremists scattered here and there throughout Alaska’s vast landscape, you would have thought something catastrophic – maybe even cataclysmic – had occurred late last week. From across the state, they reacted to a published notice by the Treasury Department’s Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, putting banks and other lending institutions on notice that their recent plans to deny capital for Arctic development may not pass federal muster. We’ve written about this before, commending Alaska’s Senators Dan Sullivan and Lisa Murkowski, as well as Congressman Don Young, for their aggressive response…