The Kenai LNG facility, located in Nikiski, Alaska, is the only LNG export plant in Alaska and North America. The facility began operating in 1969. Facility operator ConocoPhillips said in a Jan. 19 press release that the LNG plant currently employs 58 people and supports another 128 jobs in the Kenai area.
The company also said plant operations contribute approximately $50 million in royalties and taxes to the state and local economies, and “there are hundreds of exploration, production and oil field service jobs in the Cook Inlet fields that provide gas to the facility.”
“This extension will mean continued investments in the development of Cook Inlet gas resources and will maintain high paying jobs in the community,” said Darren Jones in the press release. Jones is ConocoPhillips’ vice president of Alaska commercial assets.
“ConocoPhillips believes that Cook Inlet has sufficient gas resources to maintain a strong industrial base on the Kenai Peninsula and this extension will provide an incentive for further gas development,” Jones said.
”The Kenai LNG operation has played a vital role in the economy of Southcentral Alaska for 38 years,” said John Barnes, manager of Marathon’s Alaska production operations, in the same release. “This operation is not only a key element of our Alaskan operations, it is a strategically important asset for the region and the state, and its continued operation provides options and flexibility in meeting the future energy needs of the region.”
ConocoPhillips owns 70 percent of the LNG facility and Marathon owns 30 percent.
Additional information on the Kenai LNG operation and the license extension application is available online at www.KenaiLNG.net. Past articles about the facility and the export license can be found in Petroleum News archives online at www.PetroleumNews.com.