Wall Street Journal: Alaska’s Folly: Politicians Contemplate a State Income Tax Republicans in Juneau would sock the state economy rather than tap a $51 billion reserve fund. By STEPHEN MOORE April 29, 2016 5:54 p.m. ET The first and only state to ever abolish an existing income tax was Alaska. It happened in 1980 when the oil boom in Prudhoe Bay and the construction of the Alaska pipeline brought gushers of windfall-drilling royalties and fees into the state coffers in Juneau. The combination of high-paying energy jobs and the lure [...]

Alaska LNG to delay filing of FERC application for project Platts ... agency, said Miles Baker, spokesman for the Alaska Gasline Development Corp. the state gas corporation that is part of the project with North Slope ... Calgary Herald TransCanada quarterly profit falls on end of coal deals Calgary Herald Investors are focused on the company's takeover of Columbia Pipeline ... acquire Columbia for $10.2 billion to grow its U.S. gas pipeline business.

Today's Alaska Headlamp Is An Example Of Useful, Practical Commentary Crunch time, industry at risk. Under a rewrite of HB247, currently pending in the House Rules Committee, current oil and gas tax credits in Alaska would be phased out by 2020. A summary of the rewrite states that in addition to phasing out nearly all credits by the start of 2020, a tax break for North Slope oil produced from newer fields would be limited to 10 years once regular production starts, rather than being a timeless benefit. Democrats don't [...]

Juneau Empire.  The Alaska Legislature is being evicted. Kevin Meyer, NGP Photo By May 1, renovations to the Alaska Capitol will force lawmakers to a new location for continued work to fix Alaska’s $4 billion budget deficit.  ...    “It’s my desire and, I think, most of us here in the Senate, that since we’re in regular session and sessions are held in Juneau, we’re going to do it here,” said Senate President Kevin Meyer, R-Anchorage, on Monday afternoon.  ... the 98th day of the Legislature and voters [...]

Calgary Herald by Don Braid. KANANASKIS VILLAGE — Premier Rachel Notley figures her pitch to the federal cabinet on Sunday was a limited hit. “It’s not like I was accosted by a bunch of combative questions,” she said afterward. “They were lovely in there.” Invited to speak at Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s cabinet retreat, Notley encouraged pipeline approvals, explained Alberta’s desperate need for market access, and outlined the NDP climate change plan to ministers, especially the easterners, who are dimly aware of it. Notley loaded them up with facts and figures. An [...]

Cuomo Kills Constitution From our Mid-Atlantic energy consultant friend: We normally take Friday and Saturday off, but this was too timely to wait; it follows neatly up to underscore points we made yesterday. As noted below, New York Governor Cuomo essentially killed the Constitution Pipeline project, which would have been a major cog in supplying additional natural gas to New York and New England: http://constitutionpipeline.com/ -dh

Fossil Fuels: Hanging Together or Hanging Separately by Dave Harbour   Today's commentary is offered in the spirit of helping to defend our readers against the endless advance of politically correct energy rhetoric. We present a Praeger University presentation, "Fossil Fuels: The Greenest Energy".  Here, Alex Epstein, founder of the Center for Industrial Progress, "...reveals that such an energy source does indeed exist, and in fact we use it every day: fossil fuels. Despite what most environmentalists would have us believe, fossil fuels have made our lives more livable, not less. [...]

Today we are traveling back home to Alaska.  We believe it to be a good time, amid the headlines, to recall the intense technical expertise and management focus needed to keep today's modern oil and gas industry operating both profitably and safely.   This timely, safety publication from BP will be useful to many of our readers.   -dh BP Safety Fact Sheet Coming....

Current and past public service sponsors: AeroMetric Alaska Airlines Alaska Cruise Association/Cruise Lines International Alaska Miners Association Alaska Oil & Gas Association Alaska State Chamber of Commerce Alaska Support Industry Alliance Ak-Headlamp Akita Drilling Ltd. AJT Mining Properties, Inc., Juneau Bethel Native Corporation BP In Alaska Commonwealth North ConocoPhillips Alaska Consumer Energy Alliance Enbridge, Inc. Robert Bell & Associates GCI Inside Government  Inuvialuit Environmental & Geotechnical Inc. (IEG) Lynden - Shipping to Alaska Northrim Bank Network Business Systems Pacific Legal Foundation Pacific Star Energy/Pacific Rim Leadership Development Peak Oilfield Service [...]

See yesterday's posting here: “Why carbon dioxide is a good thing” More coming.... 1) Polish Government Plans To Kill Wind Industry Financial Times, 18 April 2016 2) German Government Bill Threatens Renewable Energy Revolution, Green Lobby Warns Solar Server News, 18 April 2016 3) Norway To End Renewable Subsidy Scheme By 2021 Reuters, 15 April 2016 4) Europe’s Energy Crisis Poses Warning For The U.S. Breitbart, 14 April 2016 5) Coal’s Future Shifts To Developing World The Australian, 16 April 2016 6) Michael Lynch: Fossil Fuels’ Value [...]