Letter to the Editor
Energy costs
Published Tuesday, June 10, 2008
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Stumble It!June 6, 2008
To the editor:
A few months ago, I met with Rep. Jay Ramras concerning energy costs. I suggested to him that our state, with its immense wealth, needed to help relieve our residents of the huge burden they are carrying caused by the continually rising cost of energy.
Today, crude oil prices reached all-time highs of $139 plus per barrel making Alaskan’s energy requirements all the more desperate. While the Alaska Gasline Inducement Act and competing natural gas lines are good for Alaska in the long run, they will do little to reduce energy costs for at least 10 years. Enstar Natural Gas Co. has proposed to build a smaller gas line from the North Slope to Fairbanks then on to Cook Inlet. This line could be delivering low cost natural gas to Alaskans in five years.
The state of Alaska continues to enjoy extraordinary income from oil revenues caused by record prices. Ironically, the same record prices are destroying Alaskan’s economic future. I have heard that Fairbanks might lose 20 percent of its population in the next year if economic trends continue. What good does $45 billion in the bank do if the state’s residents are going broke and leaving? We need to show our legislators and our governor that Alaskans are in need, and we need their immediate help. I have heard that at least one of our local state senators thinks this rally is pointless. Let us show him and the rest of his peers just what the point is that Alaskans are not going to allow our state government to conduct business as usual. Our elected officials need to understand that our government is here to serve its residents— not the other way around. These extraordinary times requires extraordinary actions.
Please join me and thousands of other Alaskans at the Carlson Center on Thursday, June 12, from 5-5:30 p.m.
Community Discussion
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I don't agree with much that Representative Ramras has said or done, but I will be at the Carlson Center to voice my concerns. The majority of the residents in Alaska do not have an energy crisis. The Cook Inlet gas prices actually dropped last winter and the electric rate is half of GVEA at only .11 kWh. They equate the energy crisis to gasoline prices only and figure that we can just drive a little less if we can't afford it. Unless you open up a $2000.00 bill for 500g. of heating oil and a $200 electric bill it's just someone elses problem.
Maybe the rural representatives should all get together for the energy special session and form a new minority. The first bill should be to start selling Enstar natural gas at Henry Hub prices and then use all the income to offset costs to rest of the state. This would definatly get their attention.
Please remember that nothing (literally) will get to market overnight. Every option we have is going to take a little time & there is no changing that.
William: Thank you for the letter to the Editor. We need to come together for the benefit of ALL ALASKANS to make affordable energy a reality, not just a slogan.
I do understand "Fairbanksgas" rational, that Anchorage has received special treatment for the Cook Inlet gas that has kept their natural gas cost below the fair market value "Henry Hub price". But Fairbanks has benefited indirectly through the electrical inter-tie from cheaper gas. What is fair for one part of the state, should be fair for all regions of the state. Fairbanks should be given a break on the oil that is also a state resource, just as should rural Alaska which has received no benefit from the Cook Inlet gas special discount.
JoeBtfsplk: Right on!!! This is a major problem that deserves the actions of a first responder, not the long drawn out debate of "Statesman want-a-be's". What Alaskans are faced with this winter is just like a forest fire...but without the heat.
While I do feel the pain that the interior (and more over rural) alaska is going thru, I have a big problem with this rally. AGIA and the move towards a natural gas pipeline is a big step in the long view for Alaska. Its important. From what I hear and Ramras has said they want to oppose it because its going to take a decade to be finished. They want someone (the state, oil companies, god?) to build a bullet line and give us all gas at a discount, tomorrow. They want to throw out TransCanada, AGIA and Palin in favor of the promises of Conoco Phillips and BP to soothe thier problems... like some magical fairy.
Well I dont know about the rest of you, but after living thru Murkowski and the political onslaught of how "evil and bad" AGIA is... I wouldn't believe in big oil. I think even if the state were to turn its back on a (from what I hear) ethical & good company like TransCanada and fully support the Denali plan, I seriously doubt Fairbanks would see much help. I FULLY believe that Alaska would also be worse off in the long run, due to loss of revenues, lack of development (how many years have they been promising to develop Point Thompson?) and an increase in corporate influence over AK politics.
I stand with Fairbanksians, but moreover I stand with Palin, AGIA and the long-term good of Alaska as a whole. We can find another way to solve the interior's problems, we just need to start looking.
Dont listen to the Big Oil-fairies!!! :P
I made a photoalbum for everybody to see...
========================= http://s281.photobucket.com/albums/kk209...
=========================
The first gasline over the Brooks Range wins..!!
The idea is just a very rough draft and I'm open to suggestions for how to make it work better, faster, cheaper, stronger.
....flash/rumble
Their will never be cheap natual gas energy. Otherwise it will be wasted. Look to any other energy producing country and look at the crazy problems they have when they give away cheap oil or gas to the public. It just gets wasted. Frankly the past few decades of the lowest energy prices in history, was bad as the consumption increased and trapped us in excessive sized motor vehicles and 3000 sq ft heated homes in the sub artic. Look to the cabins at Alaska Land (Pioneer Park) and the pre oil boom homes in the downtown area of Fairbanks. They are better sized for our envirnment. It's over and we better adapt because to keep thinking the current configuration can be sustained will in the end fail. Once the 52" pipe is open to Chicago we will be paying market rates. Or if we do give it away then when the gas is gone what then?
Ok let's be real it is an election year. Good ole boys are going to fall in line with what ever will get them back in there cozy offices in Juneau. If you don't believe the good ole boys are in line with special interests then you are fooling yourself. We need to find the happy medium between both sides it is there you just have to know how to find it. Unless something happens to help this winter even at $79000.00 my family will not survive the winter here.
One idea doesn't always help the whole state. But if we all put our heads together maybe we can come up with multi-solutions.
Once again it's us (the bloggers,joe q public) that has ideas for solutions - the hurdle is getting it made into law...
Step 1: THE IDEA
Step 2: start a petition
Step 3: forward said petition to local representative
Step 4: local rep creates a bill & forwards to the legislature
Step 5: legislature submits bill to the governor for approval
Step 6: bill gets approved - idea in practice
Now please tell what I'm missing!!! It would take someone with alot of disposable time to constantly push the thing all the way thru to law.
Distant Thunder is making more and more sense. I would urge everyone to take a second and watch his slide show, http://s281.photobucket.com/albums/kk209...
Fairbanks could stand to shed about 20K folks and start to return to the place we came here for, not Wal Mart, Lowe’s, Home Depot and big government. The folks that need to leave are the ones on the edge and my guess are the ones who are not financially responsible to start with. Any small disruption and they are in a crisis. While it is not handy or convenient, there certainly is not an energy crisis.
I really disagree with the mentality that we need to spend the state resources on ourselves today .... it does not belong to us. That is why SS is bankrupt. The big receivers did no pay for it and then the government "borrowed" the money to pound down holes like welfare and Ted Stevens bush projects.
You need to listen to Fairbanks gas ... he makes sense and he also know what he is talking about backed up with facts and not emotion.
Fairbanksgas/Distant Thunder-
No offense, but the slide show that I just watched was nothing short of a "pipe" dream.
10 man crew that could lay 5000' of pipe a day?
2 million in labor costs?
2 million in labor wouldn't even get you off the ground, (enviromental study's, engineering, material handling, etc).
Fiber Optic and RF transmission capability within the pipe, and a "laptop" to monitor leak detect/pressure. This idea actually made me laugh out loud.
Very nice thoughts, but I have to believe that you are both completely out of touch on costs for labor projects of this size, or possibly never had any experience on the North Slope.
But I do like the idea that you guys are thinking "outside" the box.
Keep it simple and market force based. Don't create a system where energy prices are lowered or cheap. Will fail in the end with waste of the resource. 1) issue voucher to every PFD applicant for 4,000 KWH of free electric power at any regulated utility in the State - make the vouchers so they can be sold and usable by any consumer of power. 2) Issued debit card for enegy per the governors proposal $100 to $200 per month.
The utilities will then redeem the coupon with the state for the same KWH unit charge that residential customers pay with the utility. So the well tuned regulated utilities rate structure is not distorted. Business and all consumers will not waste power as they would with indirectly subsidized rates.
The even payments for all will help to keep the lower income service economy folks in our state.
Long term yes promote a 'bullet' line, wind farms along the coast, nuclear power station in a stable geological location, hydro, wood heat for all,....
And if one can not live in the the Land with incomes above $50,000 likely you will need to move on.
born and raised here. would love to see things return to pre-pipeline days. no problems back then.
I'm sure that a 4" HDPE would cost a lot more than the $60 million that Distant Thunder is talking about, but I bet it could be done for less than $400 million. GCI was able to secure permits to install 360 miles of trench from Fairbanks to Anchorage and this crosses right through Denali Park! AT&T just trenched 100 miles from Fairbanks to Delta in less than a year.
A declaration of emergency could provide for an expedited permitting process and cut through tons of red tape. Have you ever heard of soil contamination from propane? The SCADA monitoring systems for these pipelines are state of the art and you really can check the status of valves and leak detection from a laptop. Fairbanks Natural Gas has already installed miles and miles of HDPE throughout Fairbanks. In fact over 90% of all new gas distribution pipe is plastic HDPE.
The engineering for this is simple, you survey the route and dig a trench. Horizontal directional drilling will get you across and roads or rivers along the way. AT&T bored under the Tanana River at Delta in no time at all. There are multiple manufactures that have modular pumping and metering stations that are already designed and engineered. This is not reinventing the wheel, there are thousands of miles of this pipe throughout the world. Once you leave Fox there is nothing to worry about except bears and wolves.
Fairbanksgas, the difference is that AT&T and GCI weren't installing conduits for gases under pressure. Even non-flammable gases can be dangerous at high pressure, and we're talking about propane here. I imagine that the paperwork alone would run several million dollars, not to mention the need for safety and emergency precautions. When a fiber-optic line breaks, you just go out and fix it. When a high-pressure natural gas line breaks, you've got big problems.
For the record---->
Would you all quit trying to pull the wool and just stick to the facts?
Fairbanksgas is the only one who is sensible...
the rest of you are jealous.
This is like having to drown a thirsty horse in the watering trough because it ate too much locoweed.
In USA the cost of bulk HDPE thermoplastic bead over 10,000lbs is $1.15/lb
In China the cost of bulk HDPE thermoplastic bead over 10,000lbs is $0.90/lb Over 100,000lbs it's even less.
If Alaskans were to use their Royalty Ethane to make our own poly-bead we could produce it for really-really-really cheap.
3" 255psi gasline from this company weighs 2lb/ft..
their cost of materials and energy is $1.60ft
You can find the prices of poly-pipe gasline FOB W.Virginia here>>
http://flyingwplastics.com/pdf/GasCatalo...
Look at page4.
SDR 7.3 (Maximum Working Pressure is 255PSI) (Check API Recommendations, Federal D.O.T.
Requirements and/or other required standards for specific application.)
NOMINAL
PIPE SIZE
PART
NUMBER
NOMINAL
O. D.
WALL
THICKNESS
NOMINAL
WEIGHT
PER FT
COIL
LENGTH
MAX FT
PER
TRUCK
LIST
PRICE
PER 100’
1” G6025 1.315” 0.180” .29# 500’ 70,000’ $42.51
1 ¼” G6035 1.660” 0.227” .45# 500’ 36,000’ $69.08
1 ½”
G6041
G6045
1.900” 0.260” .59#
150’
500’
30,000’ $88.56
2”
G6051
G6055
2.375” 0.325” .92#
150’
500’
24,500’ $159.41
3”
G6061
G6065
3.500” 0.479” 2.00#
150’
500’
12,000’ $343.62
4”
G6072
G6074
4.500” 0.616” 3.31#
20’
40’
15,120’ $568.57
6”
G6082
G6084
6.625” 0.907” 7.18#
20’
40’
6,800’ $1268.22
.....just the facts
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