January 2009 Vol. 236 No. 1

Projects

Alaska Takes Major Step To Achieve Long-Delayed Alaska Gas Pipeline

In a major milestone in state history, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin joined Natural Resources Commissioner Tom Irwin and Revenue Commissioner Patrick Galvin as the Alaska Gasline Inducement Act license was signed in Fairbanks.

The AGIA license was awarded jointly to TransCanada Alaska, LLC and Foothills Pipe Lines Ltd. through its applicable Canadian subsidiaries identified in the Northern Pipeline Act as having responsibility for the various zones of the project in Canada. TC Alaska and Foothills are both wholly owned entities of TransCanada Corp.
“This year we have seen significant resource exploration and development in Alaska,” said Irwin. “The signing of the AGIA license is a huge step forward in the development of Alaska’s natural gas resources.”
TransCanada proposes a 4.5 Bcf/d, 48-inch mostly buried pipeline running 1,715 miles from a natural gas treatment plant at Prudhoe Bay on the North Slope to the Alberta Hub in Canada. The Alaska section will be 750 miles in length with six compressor stations at startup and five delivery points in Alaska.
“An Alaska pipeline will bring huge economic benefits to the state of Alaska, its people and its producers,” said Hal Kvisle, president/CEO of TransCanada. “And TransCanada is excited by the opportunity to take on this important role.”