Regulatory problems discourage industry investment

Kay Cashman

If Alaska wants to increase its oil and gas production, Mark Pease, Anadarko Petroleum Corp.’s new vice president of international and Alaska operations, has some pointers on how to attract more industry investment.

First, he recommends the state continue doing what it is already doing right.

“Alaska has a good record of providing access to state-controlled acreage. It has maintained a stable tax regime for the last 10 years — and let’s make sure to hold onto that! Petroleum companies have finite budgets, and Alaska competes for investment dollars with projects all over the world. Fiscal stability is an extremely important consideration.”

The main area where Alaska “needs to be more competitive, or more attractive for energy exploration and development, is in its regulatory regime,” he said.

“The Arctic exploration drilling window is already painfully short in Alaska. We need a more streamlined review and permitting process that eliminates unnecessary delays.

“We’ve got about four months at best to mobilize a massive amount of expensive equipment, materials and manpower, and then get our work done in an extremely unforgiving environment,” Pease said.

Losing even one day out of a 90-day drilling season because of regulatory delays is “unnecessary” and “unacceptable,” he said.

“Delays cost the operators money, but more importantly, they cost the state of Alaska money. The longer it takes us to prove up new fields and put them on production, the longer it takes the state to begin benefiting from taxes, royalties and jobs.,” Pease said. “That doesn’t make sense for either of us. Let’s work together to solve this.”