Momentum builds behind energy report 12/09/2007
Anchorage Chamber findings, recommendations could spur critical public policy changes across Alaska as briefings continue
A report on energy-related problems facing Alaska, released two weeks ago, has ignited little more than positive comments so far, but its authors hope the report calling for changes will light a fire...

Scenario 'alarming ... downright scary' 12/02/2007
Kenai Peninsula Borough mayor tells RDC conference attendees Alaska needs energy plan; closing LNG plant not the solution
John Williams, mayor of the Kenai Peninsula Borough, says shutting down the liquefied natural gas facility in Nikiski is only a short-term solution to the natural gas supply situation in Southcentral...

Pioneer to spud first development wells 11/25/2007
Big independent in final stages of offshore North Slope Oooguruk oil field construction; prepares to drill first of 40 wells
In mid-November Ken Sheffield, president of Pioneer Natural Resources Alaska, told attendees of the Resource Development Council's annual conference that Pioneer is nearing the end of the construction...

Public comments on NPDES due Aug. 6 08/05/2007
The Resource Development Council of Alaska sent out notices in late July, reminding members that comments on development of Clean Water Act national pollutant discharge elimination system permits are...

Alaska industry groups issue action alerts 07/22/2007
RDC, Alliance ask members to oppose NMFS' proposal to list Cook Inlet belugas as endangered species, contend numbers increasing
The National Marine Fisheries Service has issued a proposed rule that would put Cook Inlet's beluga whales on the endangered species list, a move industry groups say may have severe economic impacts t...

AGIA: No electronic filing; no record of downloads 07/22/2007
Questions and answers about the Alaska Gasline Inducement Act request for applications are available online at www.rfainquiries.com/, a non-State of Alaska Web site which allows for anonymous question...

Balancing development, cultural values 07/01/2007
ASRC president: North Slope development benefits residents; important to preserve values, sustainable Arctic environment
Speaking on a general theme of "developing resources while honoring the past" at the June 19 annual meeting of the Resource Development Council, Bobbi Quintavell, president of Arctic Slope Regional Co...

Oil Patch Insider 07/01/2007
Doogan says PPT special session in doubt; Neufeld coming to Alaska; Billon promoted
If you miss Mike Doogan's column in the Anchorage Daily News, sign up to receive his electronic newsletter to constituents. In the latest edition, columnist-turned-politician Alaska Rep. Doogan had th...

Sands top enviro hit list 06/24/2007
International environmentalists, think tanks put Alberta oil sands in cross-hairs
At the same time the Alberta oil sands are gaining attention from global investors they are also becoming a target for international environmental groups troubled by the consequences of developing wha...

Cook Inlet belugas: decline or not? 05/13/2007
The question of whether or not the beluga whales are heading for extinction revolves around the reliability of population data
It seems that everyone involved in the debate about the U.S. National Marine Fisheries Service's proposed listing of the Cook Inlet beluga whales as an endangered species wants to see the population o...

Beluga ESA listing prompts debate 04/29/2007
Resource groups challenge National Marine Fisheries Service's data, proposal; question value of endangered species classification
The sparks are flying following the National Marine Fisheries Service's announcement that the agency proposes listing the Cook Inlet beluga whales as an endangered species. (See initial story in the A...

MINING NEWS: Unique operator cleans up old messes 02/25/2007
Alexco Resource tackles potentially lucrative exploration, environmental remediation at abandoned mine sites in Yukon Territory
Ever since prospectors rushed to the Yukon seeking gold more than a century ago, miners have been guilty of extracting the mineral riches in the North and doing a vanishing act when the veins petered...

MINING NEWS: Alaskans offer to tell truth about Pebble 01/28/2007
New organization will present facts to public about economic benefits of Northern Dynasty's controversial copper-gold project
A broad spectrum of Alaskans who support the proposed Pebble mine have formed a non-profit organization to inform the public about Northern Dynasty's copper-gold project in the Bristol Bay region. Tru...

MEET ALASKA 2007: Don't sweat the small stuff 01/21/2007
Boyd urges Gov. Palin to focus on gas line, inter-agency conflicts and issues critical to Alaska's future
Petroleum News: What advice do you have for Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin regarding oil and gas matters? Ken Boyd: I think you can't really expect more giant oil fields on state land. Just offsetting the d...

Tundra travel opens in NE NPR-A 12/31/2006
Following on the heels of the opening of tundra travel in the coastal areas of state North Slope lands, the U.S. Bureau of Land Management opened tundra travel in the NPR-A northeast planning area on...

ConocoPhillips' 2007 exploration program in Alaska to top '06 effort 11/26/2006
Company President Jim Bowles tells RDC conference Conoco drilled smaller plays closer to infrastructure last year; in 2007 company going back into NPR-A, as far west as Barrow
ConocoPhillips Alaska focused its 2006 exploration close to existing infrastructure at Kuparuk and Alpine, the company's president, Jim Bowles, told the Resource Development Council's annual conferenc...

State should move ahead with gas line 11/19/2006
Other suggestions to state: bear costs in mind, ensure access to land; to Palin - broaden base of advisors, fix this contract
What oil and gas issues are of most interest to Alaska's resource community? Mostly how to get more exploration - and a gas pipeline - according to questions the audience asked as the Resource Develo...

MINING NEWS: Pebble project good fit for global group 06/25/2006
Hunter Dickinson's chairman promises his team has the expertise to develop the massive copper-gold property in southwest Alaska
Alaska's Resource Development Council members were treated to three different perspectives on the Pebble project at their annual meeting in Anchorage June 13. Several hundred people had a rare chance...

BLM takes comment on Ring of Fire plan 12/11/2005
Resource management plan/EIS covers 1.3 million discontinuous acres of 61.4 million acre Aleutians-Southeast planning area
The Department of the Interior's Bureau of Land Management is taking comments on a draft resource management plan and environmental impact statement for its Ring of Fire planning area, which arcs from...

Oil Patch Insider 11/20/2005
Petro-Canada boosts 2006 investment yardstick
Petro-Canada has raised the threshold for its 2006 investments and given a solid vote of confidence to its view that oil prices have moved into a new territory. The Calgary-based company has boosted...

Oil Patch Insider 08/07/2005
It's official: Shell opens Alaska office; Pombo coming to Alaska
In the July 3 Oil Patch Insider, Petroleum News reported that Shell Exploration and Production Co. had opened an Alaska office in Anchorage, taking over space and personnel from outgoing EnCana. On Aug....