Energy

The company acquired the project in 2019 from Caelus, which had done some of the work to prepare the field.

The fine is the second-largest issued by the Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission in the last decade, according to agency records.

The former owner of a North Pole petroleum refinery is financially liable for groundwater pollution that has contaminated drinking-water wells around the refinery, the Alaska Supreme Court said in a new ruling.

Alaska’s push to become a bigger player in the clean energy market is in the spotlight at a conference convened by Governor Dunleavy, even as the state continues to embrace new fossil fuel production, including the Willow oil project.

Friday’s election of Susanne Fleek-Green and Jim Nordlund, who ran on “clean energy,” marked a significant shift. But the results weren’t a wholesale rejection of Chugach Electric’s incumbent board.

The Legislature’s oil and gas consultant said the proposed hike would likely not affect current production, but there could be downside risk to investment in future projects.

It’s the first Chugach Electric Association election since the announcement that Southcentral Alaska is facing a supply crunch for natural gas — the primary fuel used to generate power by the region’s utilities. That news has prompted nine candidates to jump into the race for three board seats.

The 180-page report found many Alyeska workers believe “a serious incident is imminent” at the terminal, where North Slope crude oil is loaded onto oceangoing vessels.

Jody Freeman has served on the board of ConocoPhillips for 11 years. She’s made a “positive difference,” she said, but her detractors disagree.

Leaders of major environmental organizations and Indigenous groups had pleaded with Haaland to use her authority to block the drilling project, which they say contradicts Biden’s agenda to cut planet-warming greenhouse gas emissions.

The court said that ConocoPhillips can proceed with road-building work at the project on Alaska’s North Slope as the larger questions in the case are considered.

The state-owned Alaska Gasline Development Corp. has not made a final investment decision on the $39 billion project.

The saga of what was once considered a cutting-edge Arctic development provides a cautionary tale about big oil projects.

The ruling favors ConocoPhillips, which is seeking to build a gravel road to launch the controversial development.

Wednesday’s auction could further test the loyalty of environmentalists and young Biden voters frustrated by the approval of the huge Willow drilling project in Alaska.

Alaska’s U.S. congressional delegation and state Legislature filed an amicus brief backing ConocoPhillips’ giant Willow project in a federal lawsuit.

The legislation was introduced days after lawmakers learned of a sizable revenue hit from falling oil prices, pushing the state budget into deficit.

The president said he wanted to reject the project, but lawyers advised him ConocoPhillips had a strong legal argument.

The Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission will issue a report on the leak that could include enforcement measures, but the chair of the commission said there’s no timeline for the report’s release.

State tax officials provided an analysis of potential revenue impacts and benefits from Willow for the state treasury but noted uncertainty on several factors, including when the project ultimately might begin, oil price volatility and industry costs.

Now that Willow has been approved, environmental groups’ short-term strategy is litigation. But aside from that, pushing back now is “a tough one,” one activist said.

The National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska is said to have multiple oil prospects, and about 10% of the reserve has already been leased to oil companies, experts say.

The groups want road and mining work put on hold in a preliminary court decision, saying the project will cause irreparable harm. The oil company has said it will put gravel mining and road building on hold for now.