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Begich offers Arctic port development bill
Petroleum News
U.S. Sen. Mark Begich, D-Alaska, has introduced the Arctic Deep Water Ports Enhancement Act of 2013.
The bill is meant to promote development of deepwater ports in the region, said a March 1 press release from Begich’s office.
“Arctic ports will have a big effect on the way we produce and export natural resources and on our ability to reduce high fuel costs in the region,” Begich said.
The idea of establishing one or more ports to support activity in the Arctic Ocean has drawn considerable attention recently.
Arctic sea ice is diminishing, shipping activity is increasing and plans are advancing for offshore oil and gas drilling in the Chukchi and Beaufort seas. At present, no deepwater harbor exists along the northern Alaska coastline to support these activities, or the operations of the U.S. Coast Guard and other government agencies.
A recent report recommended a deep-draft seaport, and picked two sites for feasibility analysis: Nome and nearby Port Clarence. Both these locations are south of the Bering Strait, gateway to the polar ocean. The report was a product of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities.
Federal coordinator Begich’s bill, S. 428, would designate the Army Corps as the lead agency for environmental reviews on Arctic deepwater ports, and would set a limited time for the government to come to a decision on environmental impact statements.
The bill also would establish an Office of the Federal Arctic Deepwater Port Coordinator. The president would appoint, and the Senate would confirm, the coordinator. The office would coordinate the “expeditious discharge” of all U.S. departmental and agency activities, and would assess potential partnerships with developers and applications for loan guarantees.
“Because public-private partnerships will be needed to develop Arctic ports, the bill would give the Army Corps new authorities to enter into partnerships with private and local groups for development and creates a loan guarantee program to provide federal backing for private loans to port developers,” the Begich press release said. The bill says the principal amount of loans and other debt obligations guaranteed “shall not exceed, in the aggregate, $3,000,000,000.”
The press release quoted Nome Mayor Denise Michels, who said the city supports Begich’s bill.
—Wesley Loy
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