Frank Gerjevic's timid Notebook, "Gas line closer, again," questioning the reality of the proposed 739-mile gas line to Nikiski from the North Slope is more than justified. Gerjevic's skepticism — "Even with absolutely no comprehension of such amounts, $45 billion to
$65 billion (or more)" — is well founded.
Simply put without the mind-boggling numbers: "One cannot construct the world's most expensive gas conditioning plant on the North Slope, the world's most expensive 739-mile gas line to tidewater and the world's most expensive LNG terminal and compete with those that have their gas at tidewater and need none of the above."
Something the LNG advocates in British Columbia and Alberta will learn much to their dismay even though their gas conditioning plants are much less expensive and gas lines are much shorter. The world is awash with gas at tidewater and with their ability to put their facilities on barges constructed where labor is cheap and they have no competitors, just wishful thinkers.
— Jerry McCutcheon
Anchorage
Anchorage Daily News