Liquefied gas truck plan needs approval

Alaska Gasline Port Authority directors say they need approval from member communities before moving ahead with an ambitious plan to truck liquefied natural gas from the North Slope.

The 1999 municipal law that created the entity gives the Fairbanks North Star Borough Assembly and the Valdez City Council final approval over major development projects.

Fairbanks Mayor Luke Hopkins confirmed May 6 that the assembly needs to sign off on changes to the port authority’s “development plan.”

Hopkins and others from the port authority’s board met May 7 in Anchorage to advance the project.

The plan calls for the port authority to buy the privately held gas utility Fairbanks Natural Gas for $64 million and develop the North Slope for the trucking operation after a bond sale of up to $250 million.

Information came from the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, http://www.newsminer.com.

— The Associated Press