By RICK WHITBECK | POWER THE FUTURE
This past week, I appeared on the Amy Demboski Show to talk all things energy. I took a call from someone named Bruce, who asked me what I’d do to help Alaska’s energy economy and future if I was in charge for a day.
It was a great question, and as I answered it, I thought about the myriads of opportunities this great state has under its crust. So many of them have been stymied from moving forward under the Biden/Harris administration.
Each of them have the potential for dozens, if not hundreds, of full-time, six-figure jobs. Those could bring qualified employees and their families to our state and help reverse the outmigration trends of the past decade. Many of the jobs would be filled by rural residents, who could then balance traditional lifestyles with employment opportunities not found in their villages.
They’re worth listing for the purposes of discussion and to act as a roadmap for a potential second Trump administration.
To begin with, let’s once again authorize exploration and leasing activities in ANWR’s (the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge) Coastal Plain. Those activities were first paused, then cancelled, as part of Biden’s 2020 campaign pledges brought to life. Legally-binding leases were voided, and Congressionally-mandated activities ordered reversed. The potential for decades of jobs and billions of barrels of oil were negated; sacrificed at the altar of a fake “climate crisis”.
The blowback from eco-radicals over the one “win” we had under the Biden administration – with Willow’s reauthorization – led Biden to shut down areas the size of Indiana in the NPR-A to further development activities over the last six months. If I had the power, I’d reverse those immediately, as most of those areas had already been through environmental and permitting approval processes.
The Ambler Mining District in Northwest Alaska is an area rich in copper, cobalt and other critical and strategic minerals. Even with Congressional mandates guaranteeing access to the area, Alaska’s Congressional delegation was unable to offset the extremist voices cajoling Biden to shut down access through the 16 miles of the Gates of the Arctic National Park. He heard the eco-left, ordered the areas closed, and in doing so, put domestic supply chains of those materials at-risk. I’d re-open the permitting process, and believe Ambler represents one of the greatest opportunities in the nation for securing domestic supply chains of those minerals.
Projects with clean environmental impact statements – especially ones with an ability to change markets and supply chains alike – should be given expedited approval status. That’s the case with the Pebble Mine, and I’d sign permits to allow its development. Especially with Pebble’s final environmental impact statement coming back clean, with the science and studies debunking the eco-left’s fears that opening Pebble would decimate the Bristol Bay fishery over 200 river miles away, there’s zero reason not to bring the trillion dollars of product to market and create the 700+ jobs in the region.
There are many other opportunities that Alaska has to offer American energy security. The AK-LNG pipeline has federal loan guarantees and a supplier of natural gas, but still faces significant headwinds. Let’s figure out how to make that happen, and soon!
The GraphiteOne mine near Nome would supply nearly the entire national demand for graphite. A coal plant in the Mat-Su Valley could help supply hundreds of megawatts of power to Alaska’s key population centers. The Ucore/Bokan Mountain rare earth elements project on Prince of Wales Island in Alaska’s Southeast Panhandle would be game-changing in an effort to establish domestic supply chains.
Simply put, Alaska can be the tip of the spear in helping America become energy dominant; a stated goal of Trump’s during his acceptance speech at the Republican National Convention.
If I had 24 hours to make things move forward, these are the projects I’d focus on. I’d be exhausted at the end of the day, but Alaska’s energy future would be bright, jobs would last for generations and America would be more energy secure.
Thanks, Bruce, for the question on Amy’s show this past week. It gave me a lot to think about, and man, it’d be fun to have that power for the day, for sure!
Rick Whitbeck is the Alaska State Director for Power The Future, a national nonprofit organization that advocates for American energy jobs. Contact him at [email protected] and follow him on X (formerly Twitter) @PTFAlaska.
There are two forces at work. The global elite want to shut down all US manufacturing, farming, and energy production (or have it tightly controlled). The climate change cult think they’re going to die in 5 years if we don’t eliminate all petroleum production and transport (shutting down the pipeline). Lots of dark money funds these two groups and they own a lot of politicians.
1-open the slope for oil and gas extraction.
2- open Ambler and Pebble.
3- build a gas pipeline to Fairbanks. Use the gas to bring down energy prices in the interior.
4-build a rail line to Nome. Facilitate easier, year round delivery of goods, services, and energy to West Alaska.
5-build a refinery in Valdez and keep some of this oil for ourselves.
6- close down fire island and all the other useless green daydreams. Keep any that actually work.
7-take the utilities out of the hands of the Anchorage politburo and privatize them.
Open up pebble?, even after they were convicted of securities fraud in June of 2023 by lying on the federal permit applications asserting the mine would be very small, cheating investors out of millions and getting caught on tape planning the worlds largest open pit mine in the world with no liability agreement (hence pebble limited), crazy idea, ”wrong mine wrong place” as Senator Ted Stevens quoted.
Masked my friend, you need to study issues and proposals before you start typing away 😉
3rd,
Congratulations on at least not spouting complete hyperbolic nonsense about an open pit mine that would be 7 or 18 or 35 times larger than the world’s largest open pit mine.
For the record they aren’t planning on opening the world’s largest open pit mine, but one just a small fraction of the size of the 10 square miles that is the world’s largest open pit mine…but you know that already.
Northern Dynasty killed any chance of a pebble mine not to mention Alaska and the good ole USA does not want it.
Not only was it planned to be the worlds largest mine, they were going to use nuclear power to operate it, 369 square miles then some. It’s all on audio 😉
After all this time you still haven’t read the plan or understand that Pebble does not plan or have the ability to open create a 369 square mile open pit mine, it’s quite the feat to remain so ignorant.
The largest open pit mine in the world started in the 1800’s and is only 10 square miles, let that sink in.
Even using nuclear power, claiming that the creation of an open pit mine 37 times the largest mine in the world is a completely absurd.
Pebble does not even own mineral rights to 369 square miles.
You are correct in pebble not owning half of Alaska however other mining investors own claims around the perimeter of pebbles ground zero and we all know equipment brought in by the foreign and fraudulent Northern Dynasty would be used for the other claims as well, its just business logic for a grand total of 765 spare miles according to the Dept. of Natural Resources.
Maybe you should take up your uneducated argument with DNR.
So now you are claiming a 765 square mile open pit? Even the most radical environmentalists understand that the proposed mine is nowhere near the absurd numbers you are coming up with.
#1) … Yes. Open ‘all’ of it!
#2) … Yes. Donlin Gold too!
#3) … Yes.
#4) … Yes.
#5) … There’s already a refinery in Valdez, i.e. “Petro-Star.”
#6) … Yes.
#7) … Yes.
Also:
Overhaul stifling // egregious regulations eliminating the over-reach.
Develop a commission (gov’t + industry majors) to develop “all” resources in AK907, O&G – Critical Minerals – Coal – Timber, with mandated performance metrics on meeting aggressive production minimums and maintaining those minimums.
Fill TAPS to >85% capacity.
Eliminate the “dogs and slugs” in the government agencies
There is a refinery in Valdez. I keep hearing this over and over. Recently at a public meeting I heard 2 older men going on and on about us having no refinery’s in Alaska. How is it people are not aware that we have a refinery in Valdez and a refinery in kenai???
North Pole too … “Petro-Star” and “Flint Hills”
I’m not sure if they’re still operational?
Another use for Natural Gas is in Rocket Fuel… Liquid Methane, an extraction of Natural Gas, is the standard component used by SpaceX to mix with LOX… Methalox Propellant… Alaska also has two small spaceports that are near very large deposits of Natural Gas… KSC and VBG are running close to full capacity year round… The space industry is already looking for options… Seems like there should at least be a working plan to accommodate the possibilities… ^^^
Imagine asking that same question to state senator Wielechowski…..
You have all of Alaska looking like Flint, Michigan in no time. Worst than it already does AND is.
I wonder how their fair share is working out for them.
(sarcasm)
If you’re in charge for a day, Rick, you might help Alaska’s energy economy by sharing a quick word with Anchorage Peoples Assembly members about what’s likely to happen when productive residents find out their own government’s really serious about sabotaging their electricity and water infrastructure.
Morrigan – For that, you can see yesterday’s reprint of my Power The Future blog post from Thursday. I call out the current ANC “leadership” for their stupidity on Eklutna. I know that it falls on deaf ears within the cabal of the leftists running the Muni, but I’m hoping it helps rile up the right people to get involved in the next election cycle.
Rick
Thanks, Rick. Your June 6 blog message on the same subject was also eloquent, well reasoned.
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Would be interested in your opinion (no right or wrong answer):
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If Assembly members’ deaf-ear syndrome is worsening, increasing from voter fraud, child endangerment, bum housing, inflated taxes, in other words, everything productive citizens worry about, to threatening sabotage of the city’s water and electric supply,
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…what persuades us that Assembly members, so earnestly self-deafened, would hear, much less respond favorably, to logical, eloquent arguments to preserve the city’s water and electricity supply?
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…what conclusions come to mind about elections as a remedy when elections are controlled by people employed by the same self-deafened Assembly members?
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How about re-raising, calling their bluff, putting them on permanent defense?
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Suppose Assembly members were challenged in nationwide forums for threatening to blow up their own city’s water and electric supplies.
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Did Assembly members just threaten terrorist action under color of law?
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What’s “color of law”? Answer’s at ‘https://www.justice.gov/crt/deprivation-rights-under-color-law). See the penalties?
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And that’s before mentioning “dark money” and RICO in the same breath, the stuff of opposition research, no?
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What could happen when this news hits municipal bond-market movers and shakers, especially movers and shakers who own Anchorage bonds, does the humiliation of “junk downgrade” come to mind?
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What happens when President Trump, well known for his antipathy toward green new scams, hears about Anchorage Assemby members’ threat to cut off 6% of the city’s electricity and 90% of its water to… do what, exactly?
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From a trusted source, we learn “The Eklutna hydroelectric project is currently in the final phases of a reauthorization of its fish and wildlife mitigation and enhancement plan. The final plan, as developed over a five-year process by the voting members of its ownership group, is in the hands of Alaska’s Governor, Mike Dunleavy.”
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The same Governor Dunleavy seen next to President Trump at the convention?
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Bottom line: Seems like there’s resources and strategy to defeat the Assembly members’ plot by thoroughly discrediting Anchorage Assembly members nationwide.
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Question now is how to deploy same with maximum effect.
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What say you, Rick?
As governor, I would kick the foreigners out, repatriate them with their home nations and seize all land assets.
Then, to answer Rick’s question on energy, I would build a nuclear power plant to energize south central Alaska.
OUR PRESIDENT SAID DRILL & GAVE US ANWAR OPENED SAYS ME. I would oust rank choice voting immediately & simply VOTE MAGA INTEGRITY
The first thing I’d do is make sure Alaskans knew that we are an owner state- as Wally Hickel often told us. The resources belong to Alaskans. So says the Alaska Constitution. Article VIII, section 2 makes it very clear those resources must be developed for the maximum benefit of Alaskans. It is why the feds gave us 103 million acres at statehood. We are supposed to use those resources to pay our own way. Norway, not run by fools, has amassed a massive fortune. Their sovereign wealth fund is now worth over $1.6 trillion dollars- and they started their fund 20 years AFTER we started the Permanent Fund. Think about that. Norway, like Alaska, has massive amounts of oil and gas, but they managed their ownership way better than Alaskans. They didn’t have legislators taking bribes from Big Oil.
SB-21 has now cost us, conservatively, $14 billion just in the $8 dollar per barrel corporate welfare credit that was never needed, esp. from Prudhoe Bay- the largest oil field in North America. SB-21 has now cost Alaskans- in the form of lower dividends- about $40,000.00 per family of four.
So, job #1 is to get a fair return for our oil and end corporate welfare. With the billions of revenue we’d enjoy from just that one change we could start to develop infrastructure that is critical to our future.
I would get us out of the feds control.
“If you were in charge for a day, how would you help Alaska’s energy economy?”
I wouldn’t. I would focus on Alaska’s energy access, including a natural gas pipeline network connecting North Slope gas to the railbelt and a propane manufacturing industry in the Fairbanks area designed to fuel interior villages with home heat and cooking fuel via the existing river transportation system.
The unelected judiciary who responds to and in many cases supports extremist environmental groups founded and funded by foreign adversaries should be first and foremost, without addressing this issue all the rest is meaningless. Lawsuits with the sole mission of destroying progress, upsetting the economy, and supporting third world economies run by tyrants and terrorists with no interest in protecting the environment shouldn’t be allowed and if they are to be allowed they should be tossed with extreme prejudice and be forced to pay any and all legal fees.
Install small-scale nuclear reactors.
Great list, Rick. Here’s some additional suggestions:
– GTLs off the Slope. Batch ship product with crude. Reinject CO2 for gaslift.
– 80k bbl/day CTL plant at Tyonek. Also get a 350 MW electric generation plant in the deal
– Start plopping 1-5 MW GenIV nuke plants around the bush. A few larger ones 25-75 MW in the railbelt
– Pebble
Cheers –
Secede from the Union…or just compromise and require the Feds to surrender direct control of 90% of the 65% of Alaska they control?
Sorry folks, but with 65% of Alaska in Federal hands and most of the rest highly regulated because it’s part of navigable waterways, statehood is a facade.
We will never develop our resources for our own citizens, we can’t even build a highway and haven’t done so for years, good paying mining and
extraction jobs are being replaced by near minimum wage tourism and retail jobs.
Until we can control our lands and our resources, we have no say in our own future.
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