Governor's Office Release: Governor Sean Parnell (NGP Photo) today submitted comments (here) on upcoming revisions to the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) Comprehensive Conservation Plan by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS). A new refuge plan could potentially affect the most promising unexplored petroleum region in North America. ... “Responsible oil and gas development in ANWR’s coastal plain would provide a secure on-shore domestic supply source of energy for the nation, create tens of thousands of jobs throughout the country, and ensure the continued operation of the Trans Alaska Pipeline System for [...]

KTVA/Fairbanks News Miner.  Feds Support Pipeline. TransCanada's Tony Palmer (NGP Photo) Gives Chamber a Gas Pipeline Update At noon today, Tony Palmer told the Anchorage Chamber of Commerce that the Open Season commencing on April 30 will be on schedule and completed by July 30, leading to a filing with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission in the the Fall for a certificate of public convenience and necessity to build and operate the pipeline.  He spoke of the unprecedented transparency of the project, noting that 1200 pages of information on the [...]

ADN/PNA by Eric Lidji.  The Regulatory Commission of Alaska is letting four owners of the trans-Alaska oil pipeline keep charging higher shipping rates on oil bound for Alaska markets while it continues investigating whether the rate increases are reasonable. CBC.  Bob McLeod (NGP Photo) said if the blowout — which has led to a massive oil spill off the coast of Louisiana — leads to tighter U.S. environmental restrictions on oil production, there could be more demand for natural gas from places like the N.W.T.'s Mackenzie Delta, where a gas pipeline has [...]

E&E News (subs. req’d) reports, “In the wake of the massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, environmentalists today announced plans to sue the Obama administration over its failure to force preparation of an analysis of how an Arctic spill would affect the imperiled polar bear. (See our editorial, yesterday) Edmonton Journal by Dina O'Meara.  Enbridge Inc. is plowing ahead with a controversial pipeline from Alberta’s oilsands to the port of Kitimat, B.C., to open new markets for Canadian crude, chief executive Pat Daniel said in Calgary on.... Alaska Dispatch [...]

We believe Langland's Counsel to Alaska's Business and Political Leaders Will Be Especially Critical in Wake of the GOM Tragedy and Potential Alaska Impact (See Alaskanomics, Northrim's new website!) Economics 101.  On April 6 at Anchorage's Denaina Convention Center, Northrim Bank Chairman Marc Langland issued a challenge that Alaska's business and political address state fiscal policy issues.  Your author asked the event host for his perception of Economics 101 and Alaska's oil tax policy.  We  are happy that the Alaska Standard obtained Langland's response: a pithy and useful economics review.  Northrim hosted [...]