GAS STORAGE FACILITY IN COOK INLET
I am proud to co-sponsor HB 280 Which Relates to Gas Storage in Cook Inlet. This bill has passed the House and is now awaiting a hearing in the Senate Resources Committee. Residents of South Central Alaska are at risk in the near future of not enough natural gas produced in the Inlet to heat and light their homes and businesses. Legislative action now can help address this challenge before it becomes a crisis for us and neighboring communities.
A critical and universally recognized part of the solution is large-scale gas storage, allowing utilities to purchase gas during lower demand periods and hold the gas in storage; then withdraw it when needed. Establishing gas storage is crucial, and the state needs to promote the rapid development of storage facilities. House Bill 280, the Cook Inlet Recovery Act (CIRA), provides tax incentives and regulatory assurances to attract the private investment necessary to develop storage facilities and help reduce the cost of storage to consumers.
CRITICAL DEVELOPMENT – ALASKA’S OUTER CONTINENTAL SHELF
The Alaskan Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) is a crucial source of future energy not only to Alaska but the Nation. Recent estimates of the resources in the OCS undiscovered reserves are 27 billion barrels of oil and 132 trillion CF of natural gas. Add this to the estimated 35,000 jobs that OCS development could potentially create and the economic benefits are clear. I introduced House Joint Resolution 28 and it was signed into law as Legislative Resolve 29. The resolution urged the President of the United States and the United States Congress not to adopt any policy, rule, or administrative action, or enact legislation, that would restrict energy exploration. The resolution also called for no policies to restrict development and production in federal and state waters around Alaska or the OCS within 200 miles of shore. At the end of March, the Environmental Protection Agency announced it had approved a Clean-Air Permit for Shell to operate its drilling ship in the Chukchi Sea, but not in the Beaufort Sea at this time. Shell wants to drill three exploratory wells on the Arctic Ocean acreage it leased in 2008.
