Governor Walker urges ASAP project expansion

Alaskan Governor Bill Walker voiced his support to expanding the size of the Alaska Stand Alone Pipeline which is owned 100 percent by the state.

Walker said that the ASAP project was designed to deliver smaller volumes of gas from the North Slope to communities where practicable. He added that together with the pipeline project another large development, the Alaska LNG project is taking shape in the state and he stressed that Alaska needs to assist in furthering the project.

However, Walker voiced his concerns over a possibility that the Alaska LNG project fails to progress to the next stage. It is the intention of the state of Alaska to increase the viability of the ASAP project. In contrast to the small-volume project originally proposed, a larger ASAP project would make economic sense and provide affordable energy to the Alaskans.

Walker’s intentions are to make the ASAP a market-driven project with the state firmly in control.

“Using existing funding, the project will explore market opportunities and financing arrangements with potential buyers of Alaska’s gas and will be designed for both in-state and export markets. Working with the buyers, the project will develop a financing plan anchored with long-term contracts for purchase of Alaska gas,” he said.

Walker said that the state will work with buyers to secure the market opportunities and whichever of the two projects, Alaska LNG or the ASAP project, first produces a solid plan will get state’s full support.

In his statement, Walker said that due to the current financial situation forces Alaska to take control of the situation and develop a large-volume natural gas project best suited for the state.

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LNG World News Staff; Image: gov.alaska.gov