ADN by Dermot Cole.  Gov. Sean Parnell argues that the Alaska Stand Alone Pipeline is a priceless insurance policy against the possibility that the oil companies will decide by 2019 that they do not want to build a larger pipeline.

Challenger Bill Walker counters that it is a pricey plan that would ensure energy costs in Anchorage would go up. He wants to stop spending money on ASAP as soon as possible.

Parnell said the two gas lines should be pursued for the same reason that the proposed Susitna-Watana dam should remain in the mix for Alaska’s energy future — it’s not clear yet which one is the best bet.

The list of mega-projects should not be trimmed "until we have something in hand for Alaskans," Parnell said.

“Yes, everything has to be on the table, yes you have to prioritize spending,” he said in a recent Anchorage Chamber of Commerce debate.

ADN Op-Ed (Currently appearing in other publications as well), by John Burns.  This political season is generating much debate about Alaska’s public investment in developing a North Slope natural gas pipeline. As chairman of the board for the Alaska Gasline Development Corporation, I’ve been intimately involved in both alternatives currently being advanced — the Alaska Stand Alone Pipeline (ASAP) and the Alaska LNG project. I can assure you that we are progressing both options in the most prudent and cost-efficient manner. The ultimate goal is to select the project that is in our state’s best long-term interests. Now is not the time to abandon either. 

Today's Consumer Energy Alliance Energy Links: 

National Journal: Do Falling Oil Prices Change the Math on Keystone? *David Holt Op-ed
EIA.gov consistently releases reports that show the U.S. economy will continue to need crude oil for the foreseeable future. EIA.gov data also shows that the price of a barrel of oil fluctuates over time. In 2008, crude oil sold for $96.94 a barrel, four years later the price rose to $108.56. What we do know is the price of a barrel of oil will rise and fall and the U.S. economy will continue to buy crude oil. Which brings us back to Keystone XL. Pipelines, such as the Trans-Alaska Pipeline or the Colonial Pipeline which runs from Houston, TX to Linden, NJ, are vital to powering the U.S. economy. Just as an airline or rental car company is vital for a business traveler, pipelines are critically important for an economy.
 
National Journal’s Energy Edge: EPA Announces New Steps in Clean-Power Plan*David Holt Quoted
"A farmer may not grow as much corn next season because speculation is driving down prices, but that doesn't mean that he will walk away from the crop, that fertilizer companies will stop producing fertilizer or that manufacturers will stop building tractors. Apply the same logic to Keystone XL versus lower oil prices and you quickly dismiss any argument against pipeline construction." —David Holt, president, Consumer Energy Alliance
 
The Energy Voice: How Affordable Energy Helps Keep Healthcare Affordable
Hospitals hum with energy from nurses, doctors and a cast of support staff who provide care and treatment to help the sick heal. Healthcare professionals rely on their skills as well as facilities and equipment to provide care, all of which requires dependable sources of energy. According to the U.S. Department of Energy, healthcare facilities consume close to 10 percent of the total energy used in commercial buildings in the United States.  A cost the federal government estimates to be more than $8 billion a year.
 
The Hill: Offshore drilling — the Keystone pipeline of the sea
While half a million people marched in New York and across the nation for climate action this fall and the U.S. launched a new air war in the oil-rich Middle East, President Obama moved forward on one of his least noted but potentially highest impact energy decisions.
 
Fuel Fix: Oil companies want more time for Arctic drilling
Three oil companies with billions invested in Arctic drilling leases are pleading with the Obama administration for extra time to hunt for crude under waters north of Alaska, but so far, federal regulators have been skeptical.
 
CNBC: Could shale help US beat Saudi Arabia as top oil producer?
The fracking revolution could open the way for the U.S. to overtake Saudi Arabia as the world's number one oil producer, energy research provider Platts said in a report on Tuesday.
 
The Wall Street Journal: Obama’s Post-Election Policy Blowout
Decisions on immigration, Iran and other hot issues that were delayed for political reasons will be coming soon.
 
Reuters: Kerry wants Keystone pipeline decision 'sooner rather than later'
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said on Tuesday during a visit to Canada that he would like to make a decision soon on TransCanada Corp's Keystone XL crude oil pipeline.
 
Bloomberg Businessweek: TransCanada Keystone Decision May Come Soon, Kerry Says
A decision on TransCanada Corp. (TRP)’s long-delayed Keystone XL pipeline, designed to ship growing Canadian oil sands supplies to Gulf Coast refineries, may come soon, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry saidThe 
 
The Wall Street Journal: Planned TransCanada Pipeline Would Allow Gulf Access, CEO Says
A planned Trans- Canada Corp. oil pipeline designed to ship crude from Western Canada to Eastern Canadian refineries could also be used to access the Gulf Coast, creating an end-run around U.S. permitting delays for the Keystone XL pipeline, according to the company’s chief executive.

Globe and Mail: Keystone foes energized as tumbling crude prices pinch oil sands
Falling oil prices have energized opponents of the proposed Keystone XL pipeline.
 
UPI: Canada 'impressed' with Keystone XL vetting
The Canadian government is "impressed" with the State Department's vetting of the Keystone XL oil pipeline, Canadian Foreign Minister John Baird said.
 
Bloomberg BNA: Sustained Lobbying Push on EPA Standards For Power Plants Continues, Records Show
At least 120 groups, varying from public health advocacy associations to large publicly traded companies, reported lobbying Congress during the third quarter of 2014 to express their views on the Environmental Protection Agency's proposed carbon pollution standards for power plants, public records show.
 
The Wall Street Journal: The American Solution to Europe’s Energy Woes
Extending the network of interconnectors within the EU and its neighbors, adopting energy-efficient technologies and exploiting renewable-energy resources may all eventually play a part in that process. But there is another, more immediate solution at hand: expediting the import of liquefied natural gas, or LNG, from the U.S.
 
Daily Caller: Shale Development Reaffirms American Exceptionalism
The energy boom unleashed by hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling couldn’t have happened anywhere but America, says author and journalist Gregory Zuckerman. Zuckerman say America’s entrepreneurial spirit, knowledge and property rights make fracking a uniquely American story.
 
Houston Chronicle: Vast generation gap on energy issues
There's also a generation gap on hydraulic fracturing, with twice as many older people knowing the term and the majority supporting the technique. But among the young people familiar with fracking, the majority opposed it.
 
Bloomberg: Mercedes drivers stung by quirks at the pump
The shale oil boom is proving far less kind to Mercedes-Benz drivers than it is to those sitting behind the wheel of a Toyota Camry or Chevrolet Impala. While regular gasoline-chugging drivers are paying just $3.04 a gallon in the U.S., the lowest in four years, those cruising around in luxury cars and demanding only the finest of grades, known as premium, have seen smaller declines.
 
Kansas City Star: Future of natural gas industry keeps improving, survey says
The U.S. natural gas industry is gathering steam amid changes and challenges that are remaking the business, according to a new report from Black & Veatch. Last year the Overland Park firm’s annual report on the industry described a cautious optimism about likely growth because of the trove of natural gas being recovered from shale formations in the United States.
 
KQED: Should Shale Be Banned?
On Tuesday, November 4, 2014 three counties in California will decide by ballot whether or not to ban hydraulic fracturing, otherwise known as “fracking.”
 
KVNF: Colorado Gov Candidates Make Their Last Pitch
Hickenlooper said he's confident his oil and gas task force will come up with recommendations that give lawmakers guidance on ways to reduce public concern over fracking.
 
News Tribune: In silica valley, the sand is moving
In silica valley, the sand is moving. Mining of silica sand has ramped up in the Illinois Valley, especially in La Salle County, to feed the growing fracking industry.
 
News & Observer: Vote to put state Senate on a better course
Crawford is challenging Republican Sen. Chad Barefoot, a 31-year-old conservative who has been in lockstep with the Senate’s leadership. He wants to smooth the path for fracking in North Carolina and insists tax cuts for corporations and the wealthy are the best way to lift working class North Carolinians out of the post-recession rut.
 
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette: Oman oil and gas minister praises shale
Even as his home region captures headlines for the ongoing conflict in Syria and Iraq, a long-serving energy minister in the Middle East said Tuesday that he wants U.S. businesses to know that his country has a “competitive advantage” of peace and stability.
 
Morning Call: Natural gas price outlook: still cheap
Last winter, at the height of the polar vortex, skyrocketing demand sent the spot market price of natural gas in the Northeast through the roof.
 
New Castle News: Governor’s candidates fractured over how to tax shale
Drillers seriously started fracking in Pennsylvania seven years ago, launching a swell in natural gas production that also tapped new sources of cash for the state.
 
Morning Call: Shale severance tax opposition explored
Here are three basic themes to opposing a severance tax on Pennsylvania's shale gas production, such as the one currently being proposed by gubernatorial hopeful Tom Wolf and vehemently opposed by incumbent Tom Corbett.
 
Columbus Dispatch: Kasich: tax is unfair to Ohioans
A week before he’s expected to easily win a second term, a combative Gov. John Kasich voiced readiness to increase taxes and regulations on Ohio’s oil and gas industry.
 
San Antonio Business Journal: Energy industry continues to help boost Texas’ job market
Texas ranked third in the nation in terms of non-agricultural job growth for the nine months ended Sept. 30, 2014. The Lone Star State's employment rose 3.3 percent between January and September and the comparable period a year ago, according to the W.P. Carey School of Business at Arizona State University, utilizing data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
 
WFFA: Outside money flows into Denton shale debate
Close to $80,000 has gone to the "Pass the Ban" committee, with more than half of that coming from the Washington D.C.-based environmental group Earthworks.
 
Associated Press: Texas amends waste disposal rules
The Texas Railroad Commission has amended rules for disposal well operators amid concerns that high-pressure injections can trigger earthquakes. As of Nov. 17, disposal well operators must research U.S. Geological Survey data for a history of earthquakes within 100 square miles of a proposed well site before applying for a permit.