State recommends initial project funding
While the state is looking to significantly increase the role of renewable energy in the future, it is getting started now with help from a fund created by lawmakers last year.
On Jan. 16, Steve Haagenson, state energy coordinator and head of the Alaska Energy Authority, released a list of 79 projects recommended for the Renewable Energy Fund.
The projects total $100 million, the full amount lawmakers put toward the fund last year.
Lawmakers initially pledged to spend another $50 million each year for the next four years, but that was before state revenues declined sharply last fall with the price of oil.
The 79 projects still need approval from the Legislative Budget and Audit committee before they can move forward, but Gov. Sarah Palin said “with swift action” projects can be “headed to construction” as early as this summer. Timing is important because the construction timetable in many smaller communities relies on barges to import goods.
The projects come from every major region of the state. The proposals are mostly small wind and hydroelectric projects, but the list includes solar, geothermal and biomass projects, as well as support for electric generation from the Anchorage Regional Landfill.
For a complete list, visit www.akenergyauthority.org.
—Eric Lidji
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