It’s on to the Supreme Court. But first stop, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals.
The Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority, along with the Kaktovik lnupiat Corporation, Arctic Slope Regional Corp., and the North Slope Borough, have filed an appeal with the Ninth Circuit over the Biden Administration’s cancelled leases in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.
The appeal challenges an August 2023 ruling by U.S. District Court Judge Sharon Gleason regarding the suspension and moratorium of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge Coastal Plain 1002 Area oil and gas program mandated by the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017.
In that lawsuit, AIDEA said the lease termination violated a statute that directs the Interior Department to award leases covering at least 400,000 acres in ANWR. Gleason dismissed the lawsuit.
Gov. Mike Dunleavy said of the decision, “The State of Alaska has long been at the forefront of fighting for our state rights and pushing back against federal overreach. The federal govemment‘s actions regarding the ANWR leases not only undermine our state’s autonomy but also hinder our ability to harness our rich natural resources for the betterment of all Alaskans which was guaranteed in the 2017 Tax Act. This appeal is crucial in our ongoing efforts to assert Alaska’s rights and potential.”
Statements were also made by the partners in the lawsuit:
“Kaktovik is the only village within the project area. Our involvement in this appeal is about protecting the rights and future of our people. The decisions made by the Department of Interior have significant implications for our community, and it’s essential that our voices are heard in this matter,” said Charles Lampe, President of Kaktovik liiupiat Corporation.
“The Department of the Interior seems to believe that they care about this land more than we do. The elected leaders of the North Slope spoke in unison in opposition to this rule and the rulemaking process. To refuse to listen to our voices is to say that you know better – better than the people who have been this land’s stewards for the past 10,000 years, and who depend on its continued health for their own survival. We deserve the same right to economic prosperity and essential services as the rest of this country, and are being denied the opportunity to take care of our residents and community with this decision. it is insulting and, unfortunately, representative of the federal government’s treatment of our indigenous voices for decades,” Mayor Josiah Patkotak of the North Slope Borough said.
Sen. Lisa Murkowski said she was the lead author of the section of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act that mandated the lease program and at least two lease sales by the end of this year. She said the Department of the Interior’s recent actions violate the law.
“My team and I invested countless hours in crafting this legislation, ensuring it balanced economic development with environmental stewardship. lt’s crucial that the clear intent and plain direction of this law, to responsibly harness the energy potential of the 1002 Area for the benefit of Alaskans and the nation, are fully realized,” she said.
Here is the Irony…
KIC and ASRC Shareholders and residents of NSB as well as Lisa Murkowski will overwhelmingly vote in favor of Joe Biden at every opportunity even when their elected leaders publicly challenge Biden and his corrupt Interior Secretary Deb Haaland’s decisions to cut them off at the knees when it comes to development meanwhile New Mexico oil and gas production is at full tilt.
The Indians declared war on the Eskimos and are winning with the help of their own residents voting in favor of Murky Biden and Haaland.
Makes no sense but neither does suicide.
Congratulations Lisa, you just played yourself. Stop trusting Democrats. They’ll always burn you.
Do your homework kiddies and get your facts straight, Senator Murkowski has always been pro oil and gas and she gave us the Willow project 😉
She simply cannot be supporting Alaska oil and gas by voting to confirm Deb Haaland into Joe’s twisted basket of fruitloops.
It really helps to lift your head higher than Lisa’s trousers and get some fresh air.
She did not “give” us willow project. That was a gamble from weary investors that risked being sold out to a Biden supporting democrat voting Senator who was installed by a shister lawyer named Scott Kendall.
We’ve got five generations on the ground . Not sure what that has to do with anything ? Other than huge investments on the NorthSlope for 60 years and have not made one red cent !
I’ve done a lot homework . The Biden administration policy on federal land has pushed the investment in Alaska oil development on to the state lands on the NorthSlope . One of the challenges on getting capital for drilling on the North Slope is slowed way down by the big banks . BlackRock , WellsFargo , CarlyleGroup and Vangaurd will not loan money for any oil development or extraction on the NorthSlope . Interesting as most of the Permanent Fund is invested with these banks .
Most of the Willow development is on federal lands and it’s Been reduced in scope and size by the Biden administration to 60%, not sure that’s a win ? Its financed by ConocoPhillips. They have access to very patient capital .
When the Pikka finally goes to production , it gas taken 12-15 years to do so. That’s a huge question of why it took so damn long . ConocoPhillips sued to block access to the field and the state joined in . That was a weird one . Both the state and CP suing to block access . Bill Armstrong discovered the field right between Alpine and Milne point ? This was in a fairway that was either overlooked through incompetence or being warehoused ( not produced ) by ConocoPhillips or BP . Both scenarios are bad and a looming question as too why ? No one ever asks ?
The fact that no gravel roads are built out to the east to point Thomson dumbfounds me . One thing is for sure is that it’s kept the competition out for forty five years . State needs to build a year around road into this area . It’s one of the least explored oil regions on the NorthSlope. Exploratory well spacing is ten townships and it adjoins ANWR. Let’s get the road built . If for any reason , to clean up and oil spill . Badami pipeline has no road access .
The production of oil on the NorthSlope is going to double in the next 36-48 months . Absolute boom is going on right now . Several years of development ahead . It’s because the price of oil is high . The Willow play is a small percentage of future production . Maybe less than 25% , the rest will come from State controlled acreage and production .
We should be thankful that AIDEA does not have to waste State resources on leases nobody wants
Oh “Frank”…
Biden did say on the 2020 campaign trail that he was going to phase out fossil fuel and he’s doing exactly that. How do you like him now!
Princess still here? We can’t miss you if you won’t go away.
I have a friend who was very high up in an oil field services co until he retired a few years ago. He told me: ‘There is more oil under ANWR than there is under Prudhoe. The only reason they don’t bid on the leases is because they know they will be tied up in court for years. Look how long it took Conoco to get approval to drill Willow and that was set aside for oil development by Harding in 1923. The oil companies are taking the long view on ANWR, this will end up at the Supreme Court some day and the oil companies will win. Too much money to keep it locked up forever.”
I’m for making Alaska into one be national park that no one can visit. I’m for shutting down the North Slope oil patch. Maybe all of these lower 48 a$$holes will leave
National Park that no one can visit???
The only sure thing you could count on with the feds in charge would be a migration infestation of the new generation hippies living off the fat of the land and possibly a mix of some of dementia Joe’s “newcomers” with the brand new socialist program being installed to “fix” racist “white” America Barack Obama is engineering.
Enjoy your poverty,then!!
Senator Murkowski’s reasoning at the time (much lengthier) boiled down to: a) Ms. Haaland is going to be confirmed anyway; b) I’ll vote for her to show that I can work with her; and c) hopefully that builds enough rapport to have meaningful dialogue about Alaska oil development. “a” and “b” were clearly accurate. Any hope for meaningful dialogue was, in fact, meaningless unless dialogue is spelled “cancellation”. In many ways perfect for Sen. Murkowski: enough top cover to pretend she supports development in Alaska but every action taken to support the dictates of DNC and Pres. Biden.
Let’s not forget that in 2024 we have a whole new generation of young engineers, etc. geniuses that have at least one great idea how to extract oil, gas, natural resources without doing as much damage or even minimal. Someone will eventually coke up with a brilliant plan is dinosaurs could not produce effectively.