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Great cast this week: Mark Myers, Scott Ogan, Cindy & Malcolm Roberts, Ella Ede, Judy Patrick & Tom Barrett
Kay Cashman Petroleum News
Former Department of Natural Resources Commissioner Mark Myers and former Alaska legislator Scott Ogan have joined forces with a new company and technology that uses nanophysics to solve or minimize costly production issues the oil industry has been grappling with for decades related to asphaltene, paraffin and scale depositions and heavy oil viscosity flow, as well as larger problems associated with produced water.
The technology is called nanofluidity and the company is Houston-based Revelant Energy (see revelant.com).
Revelant says the technology often decreases oilfield production costs, thus increasing profitability for producers, as well as increases oil production. In some applications it reduces the need for chemicals, which lessens the environmental impact.
Currently, under a nondisclosure agreement with a major Alaska crude producer, the technology is being tested on the North Slope. (Oil is Alaska’s largest source of income for both the state and private sector.)
Revelant is also working with a Colorado State University team of physical chemists, condensed matter physicists, theoretical chemists and material chemists under the supervision of Amber Krummel, a professor of chemistry and the director of the CSU-based Krummel Research Group and laboratory
CSU is leading academic research efforts in the nanofluidity frontier.
In regard to the results of testing on the North Slope, Revelant President Tracy Fotiades told PN Feb. 14, “It’s too early to have that conversation. We’re in the proving phase.”
In Alaska, Myers is executive vice president of applied science and research strategy, putting him in charge of ongoing field applications, while coordinating the information exchange with CSU academics. Ogan is district manager of Alaska for Houston-based Revelant.
Ella Ede new exec director of Alaska Resource Education Alaska Resource Education’s board of directors said Feb. 13 that Ella Ede is ARE’s new executive director. A long-time ARE volunteer and board member, Ede brings more than 25 years’ experience in Alaska resource industries, including oil, gas and mining to the nonprofit, which was established in 1982.
Most recently Ede served as stakeholder engagement manager for Statoil Alaska.
“Ella’s experience, industry knowledge and demonstrated commitment to ARE’s mission make her an outstanding choice to lead the organization,” said ARE’s outgoing president, Kate Blair.
A lifelong Alaskan, Ede lives in Anchorage with her husband and four children.
“After volunteering in the classroom and at various events over the past 15 years, I am excited and honored to have this opportunity to work directly for ARE,” Ede said. ARE’s mission “has long been a passion of mine. I’m looking forward to the challenge and opportunity to lead the organization and grow this program which is so critical to helping Alaska’s youth better understand the critical role of natural resources in our state.”
Beki Kelly will continue to serve as the education program manager for ARE.
Judy Patrick, PN’s favorite industry photographer, is the new president of the organization. Fewer than 100 copies left There are fewer than 100 copies still available of Cindy and Malcolm Roberts’ full-color, coffee table memoir at 2 Friends Gallery in midtown Anchorage.
“Magic Moments, Battles Worth Fighting and Joys Worth Celebrating,” was released in September and is definitely worth the investment ($29.95).and the time to read it (lengthy and lots of photos). Make sure you check out the very long index to see if you are mentioned!
In the book the Roberts share 45 years of their Alaska history, years that include their family and that span Wally Hickel’s service as secretary of the Interior, including his oversight of the basic permitting process for the 800-mile trans-Alaska oil pipeline and his efforts to gain the congressional votes necessary to get pipeline construction approved.
The book also covers Hickel’s role in the settlement of Alaska Native land claims and the resultant Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act which was signed into law by President Richard Nixon in 1971 and was at the time the largest land claims settlement in United States history.
The Roberts also feature Hickel’s involvement in reducing the harvest of the world’s great whales and his accomplishments as Alaska’s governor (1966-1969 and 1990-1994), as well as his role in the international Community of Friends of Anchorage that grew out of the bid to host the Winter Olympics and was the beginning of Bridge Builders of Anchorage.
The Roberts also discuss AFL-CIO’s contribution to gaining federal approval to build the trans-Alaska oil pipeline, and Hickel and David Gottstein’s formation of Backbone in 1999, a citizen’s group that tracked government policies for Alaska’s oil and gas industry.
Cindy includes stories about being Mrs. America 1978, as well as her 2012 publication of “Cracking the Code” - a glossary of the numerous acronyms and terms used in connection with the proposed trans-Alaska gas pipeline.
They both tell stories about their chance meeting and making Alaska home for their family.
Hickel’s passing in 2010 hit both Cindy and Malcolm hard.
One of the best quotes in Magic Moments was inadvertently cut from the massive coffee table tome during final editing, Cindy recently told PN. It was a quote by Frank Gerjevic, at the time editorial page editor of the Anchorage Daily News. What Gerjevic said about the great man’s passing was particularly meaningful to the Roberts: “It was as if Mount Susitna (“Sleeping Lady”) has disappeared from the horizon.”
Also of interest to PN readers might be their coverage of Commonwealth North. Malcom helped found the organization and served as its first executive director.
Alyeska Pipeline recognized — again Alyeska Pipeline Service Co. is one of the World’s Most Ethical Companies for the seventh year in a row, per the Ethisphere Institute, which announced its selection Feb. 12.
“Alyeska Pipeline Service Company is honored to receive this distinction again,” said Alyeska President Tom Barrett. “It is a tribute to the professionalism and integrity of the people who operate the Trans Alaska Pipeline System.”
In 2018, 135 honorees were recognized, spanning 23 countries and 57 industries.
“Global corporations operating with a common rule of law are now society’s strongest force to improve the human condition. … The World’s Most Ethical Companies in particular continued to show exemplary leadership,” said Ethisphere’s CEO, Timothy Erblich, congratulating “everyone at Alyeska.”
The institute is considered the global leader in defining and advancing the standards of ethical business practices that fuel corporate character, marketplace trust and business success.
Ethisphere will honor recipients at the 2018 WME Honoree dinner on March 13 in New York.
DOE forms new office of energy security The Department of Energy recently established the Office of Cybersecurity, Energy Security and Emergency Response.
The action was positively received by the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners which issued a response Feb. 13, commending DOE.
“The issues under CESER’s purview are critical to the operation of a safe, reliable and resilient grid needed to support the nation’s energy infrastructure,” NARUC President John Betkoski said. “DOE’s expanded emphasis on these issues supports our members in their efforts to serve the public interest.”
- KAY CASHMAN
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