Not satisfied with imperiling Alaska’s oil and gas future by pushing an anti-jobs, anti-industry ballot measure, attorney Robin Brena is at it again. Brena and his law firm have a longstanding relationship with the City of Valdez, which is famous for being the terminus of the Trans-Alaska Pipeline System (TAPS). This week, they filed – on behalf of the City – an appeal of a recent Regulatory Commission of Alaska (RCA) ruling that kept Hilcorp’s finances private, instead of kowtowing to pressure from extremist organizations that sought to make them public.  With Hilcorp being a privately-held company, the RCA (correctly)…

Late last week, a number of pro-business organizations filed suit to demand answers on how legal the “Alaska’s Fair Share” initiative’s signature-gathering tactics were.  The initiative – a jobs-killing measure that would ultimately decrease investment in Alaska’s oil and gas sector – turned in nearly 40,000 verified signatures from across the state, surpassing the 28,501 that was required. The groups filing suit – including the Alaska State Chamber of Commerce, Resource Development Council for Alaska, Alaska Trucking Association, Alaska Miners Association, Associated General Contractors of Alaska and the Alaska Support Industry Alliance – take exception not to the number of…

With all of the social distancing, hunkering in place and flattening of the COVID-19 curve occurring across the country, Americans have had to learn new skills, processes and procedures to cope with tasks ranging from mundane to critical. As these new ways of doing things become ‘normal’, and the consciousness of how to accomplish them becomes unconscious and second nature, it is easy to be lulled into a sense of security. But let’s not let ourselves get complacent and accept the new ways of doing things, because the pandemic is going to run its course in the next few months,…

With the Easter weekend past us on the calendar – and even with substantial snowfall still hampering the ‘feeling’ of spring – Alaskans are beginning to think about summer outdoor activities. Although the COVID-19 pandemic still limits the ability to officially calendar vacations, celebrations and major life events, the planning for those continues from our ‘socially-distanced’ couches and home offices. In the spirit of summer, let’s remember all of these items that help Alaskans enjoy The Great Land are brought to you by America’s energy workers, as all contain mined materials and/or petroleum-based products: Boating, whether powered by humans or…

“Never allow a crisis to go to waste.” – Rahm Emanuel Alaska has seen its fair share of radical environmental groups and individuals taking the former Obama Chief of Staff’s message to heart these past few weeks, as they have used the COVID-19 situation to press their anti-jobs, anti-Alaskan agenda with vigor.  They attacked the Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority (AIDEA) for fulfilling its mission to “…increase job opportunities and otherwise to encourage the economic growth of the state, including the development of its natural resources, through the establishment and expansion of manufacturing, industrial, energy, export, small business, and…

Before the COVID-19 ever hit America’s shores, Alaska had the unwelcomed distinction of the highest unemployment in the nation.  We faced a $1.5 billion state budget deficit.  We were facing an ill-designed ballot measure that could triple the tax rate on already-declining North Slope fields. Then COVID-19 hit America.  Our ‘new normal’ consists of thousands of Alaska businesses shut by government order.  Of “hunker in place” orders banning us from traveling outside of our local boundaries.  Of regulations and restrictions that have already caused businesses large and small to cease operating. As many Americans try to figure out how to…

With oil prices half of what they were a month ago and worldwide oil consumption down as much as 90 percent, there are calls for the US to move forward with more green energy projects. Power The Future’s mission is to support energy workers across the US, and green projects that add to the US economy and employ additional men and women should be encouraged. However, we’d be remiss if we didn’t point out the hypocrisy of eco-extremists across the globe, whose goal is to implement job-killing, ‘Green New Deal’-type programs.  These radicals view energy creation and extractive industries as…

A month ago, the US knew about COVID-19, as images from China and Europe showed the suffering (and death) of thousands from the Chinese flu.  There were no cases in America. A month ago, Brent Crude prices were $51.90 a barrel, WTI was $46.75 and ANS was $50.85.  A month ago, a flight from Anchorage to Washington, DC would be 90% filled, and prices approached $900 for a 14-day advance, round-trip seat on flights connecting through Seattle. A month ago, you could find groceries in abundance, toilet paper lined store shelves, Purel and Clorox products were items you only bought…

Power The Future was excited to see that the Bureau of Land Management published its final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) on the Ambler Road, a 211-mile project that will connect Alaska’s Dalton Highway with the Ambler Mining District.  The District, once fully developed, could bring north of 4,000 year-round jobs to Northwest Alaska. The Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority (AIDEA) has been tasked as the major developer for the road.  The connectivity from existing infrastructure to the mining district would allow minerals and rare earth deposits – all needed for US mineral independence, national security and creating jobs –…

Last fall, Power The Future wrote about the despicable actions taken by a number of extremist organizations, including the Alaska Wilderness League, Trustees for Alaska, Friends of Alaska National Wildlife Refuges, the Sierra Club, Audubon Society, and the Center for Biological Diversity. We denounced these groups’ lawsuit against the U.S. Department of the Interior to stop a proposed land swap that would have allowed a road to be built between Cold Bay and King Cove, Alaska. This past week, those same groups went back to court, and doubled down on their assertion that building the road and connecting two communities…