Conoco: ULSD facility won't be built 12/02/2007
State of Alaska's tax changes blamed; Revenue Commissioner Pat Galvin says facility wouldn't have qualified under 2006 PPT
A proposed upgrade to a North Slope topping plant to produce the ultra-low-sulfur diesel required to meet federal government standards of no more than 15 parts per million of sulfur has been canceled...

THE EXPLORERS 2007: Anadarko to drill first ANS gas well 11/18/2007
Has two rigs under contract, drilling 2 Brooks Range gas prospects, going back to finish Jacob's Ladder
Anadarko Petroleum and its partners in the Brooks Range Foothills, BG Alaska and Petro-Canada, plan to drill the first two natural gas exploration wells in northern Alaska this winter. Gas discoveries...

LNG plant key to stable Cook Inlet market 09/16/2007
Supporters say renewing Nikiski facility's federal export license for two years would be good for economy, industry and state
With what many believe is a natural gas shortage unfolding in Cook Inlet, renewing a license for a plant in Nikiski to ship liquefied natural gas to Asia seems at first glance a frivolous, if not fool...

Tesoro stations year-round tug at Nikiski 08/05/2007
Tesoro Alaska announced July 30 that it will position year round a tractor tug at the Nikiski dock on the west side of Alaska's Cook Inlet. The dock serves tankers bringing crude oil to Tesoro's Nikis...

Regulators to revise TAPS Quality Bank 07/22/2007
State commissioners, federal judges hear testimony in concurrent hearings on proposed cost adjustment to value of ANS crude
The Regulatory Commission of Alaska and Federal Energy Regulatory Commission wrapped up more than a week of concurrent hearings July 18 on how best to revise the processing cost adjustment to the heav...

Shippers, state praise 'first step' 05/27/2007
Alaska officials and shippers Anadarko Petroleum Corp. and Tesoro Alaska Co. have hailed a federal judge's decision to lower tariffs for the trans-Alaska oil pipeline as "important" and beneficial. B...

TAPS rates too high 05/27/2007
FERC judge says Alaska pipeline owners double-dipped to justify tariffs
A federal judge May 17 ordered owners of the trans-Alaska oil pipeline to slash nearly in half tariffs they propose to charge for crude shipments, a move likely to generate substantially higher revenu...

Petro Star argues view of TAPS tariffs 04/01/2007
Minor player supports RCA's in-state rates, urges damages instead of refunds if 2005 and 2006 interstate rates are ruled excessive
Petro Star Inc., a minor player in the drama unfolding in Washington, D.C., over tariffs charged by owners of the Trans-Alaska Pipeline System, offered a somewhat different take on how federal regulat...

FERC legal team takes sides 03/11/2007
Shoots holes in TAPS owners' claims as tariff litigation moves toward review
A legal team at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission has issued an opinion that owners of the trans-Alaska oil pipeline fighting in a Washington, D.C., court to justify the tariffs they would lik...

Tesoro posts tug in Cook Inlet 01/21/2007
Oil tankers navigating the treacherous bottleneck of ice in Cook Inlet can receive assistance this winter from a new tugboat that will be brought in by oil refiner Tesoro Alaska Co. Early last year, a...

RCA rejects TAPS rate hike 01/07/2007
Alaska oil pipeline owners seek to recoup rising costs in higher tariff
The Regulatory Commission of Alaska rejected Dec. 28 revisions to tariffs filed by owners of the trans-Alaska oil pipeline that would more than double the carrier's 2007 transportation rates for North...

Alaska: Uncertainty looms downstream 08/13/2006
BP vows to help prevent crude shortages at in-state refineries that could result from shutdown at Prudhoe Bay field
When BP Exploration (Alaska) Inc. decided Aug. 6 to shut down crude production at Prudhoe Bay indefinitely, Alaska refineries joined West Coast plants and others in scrambling to prevent possible shor...

Major players ask for contract changes 08/06/2006
State receives substantive critiques of proposed gas line fiscal contract from oil and gas companies, Doyon, North Slope Borough
Comments on the proposed gas pipeline fiscal contract negotiated by the administration of Alaska Gov. Frank Murkowski with project sponsors BP, ConocoPhillips and Exxon Mobil are posted on the Web, ht...

Can pipeline regulations be simplified? 06/18/2006
Regulatory Commission of Alaska convenes special hearing to gather views from interested parties and determine way forward
Government regulation of oil and gas pipeline tariffs and operating rules is intended to create a level playing field for all users of a pipeline transportation infrastructure and to ensure fair tarif...

Ultra-low sulfur diesel is here 04/30/2006
Switch-over looms for Alaska highways, equipment, but cost, accountability uncertainties linger; DEC working with industry
After years of talk and trepidation, Alaska's diesel sector is ready to convert to using an ultra-low sulfur product in most mobile engines, including trucks and construction equipment. The switchover...

Tesoro ready for upgrades in Nikiski 06/04/2006
Petroleum refiner plans to add $45 million sulfur-stripping operation to meet Alaska's need for ultra-low-sulfur diesel
Tesoro Alaska is moving ahead with plans to add a hydro-treating facility to its 72,000 barrel-per-day petroleum refinery in Nikiski. The $45 million project will enable Tesoro, one of Alaska's leadi...

Grounded tanker eased off inlet mud flats 02/12/2006
Inspection by divers finds minor damage to outer hull of double-hulled tanker after successful refloating operation at high tide
At 8:34 a.m. on Feb. 3 three tugs eased the 575-foot, double-hulled tanker Seabulk Pride off mud flats next to the shore about half a mile north of the Nikiski Kenai Pipeline Dock on Alaska's Kenai Pe...

Judge backs RCA on tariff 01/22/2006
Ruling rejects arguments against agency-imposed rates by TAPS owners, state
An Alaska Superior Court judge upheld a 2002 decision by the Regulatory Commission of Alaska that rejected tariff rates set for in-state shippers by owners of the trans-Alaska pipeline system as being...