The Biden administration has given the go-ahead on a massive Alaska natural gas pipeline and export project amid opposition from environmental groups.
The Department of Energy (DOE) finalized a decision on April 14 on the project, which was initially approved in 2020 under the Trump administration. However, the DOE has included additional environmental protections, per Fox News.
The $38.7 billion project involves an 807-mile pipeline that spans the length of Alaska and includes an export terminal, enabling the U.S. to significantly increase natural gas exports to Asia, according to Fox News.
State-owned Alaska Gasoline Development Corporation (AGDC), whose mission is to help Alaskans benefit from the state’s natural gas reserves, commended the decision, noting that it will assist the United States in increasing energy supplies to its allies.
“This order is terrific news for the Alaska LNG [liquefied natural gas] project,” said AGDC President Frank Richards in a press release. “The Biden administration has reaffirmed the authorization for and climate benefits of Alaska LNG, which will provide Alaskans and U.S. allies with a significant source of low-emissions, responsibly produced energy consistent with international environmental priorities.”
The decision marks the second major energy project approved by the Biden administration in Alaska this year, after approving ConocoPhillips’ $7 billion Willow oil and gas drilling project in March, according to Reuters.
The DOE’s latest decision will allow AGDC to export LNG to non-free trade agreement nations.
The project has been years in the making, as it was first proposed in 2014, and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission approved construction of the project in May 2020.
The pipeline will span from Alaska’s North Slope Borough to Cook Inlet in southern Alaska, where the export terminal facility will be located. Upon completion, it will be one of only a few LNG export terminals in the West, according to Fox News.
“It’s the only major LNG project in America that’s got all its permits — it’s got state and federal. That’s not easy to do,” Sen. Dan Sullivan (R-AK) told Fox News.
“It’s got its export license. That’s also not easy to do, from DOE. And, importantly, it’s got federal loan guarantees. So, it’s the only major project in our country that’s got the full faith and credit of the United States of America backing it.”
The project is expected to create 10,000 construction jobs and 1,000 permanent jobs. The pipeline will generate 3.1 billion cubic feet of LNG per day and is authorized to export 2.6 billion cubic feet of LNG per day under the DOE decision.
West Coast states California, Oregon, and Washington, consumed 2.4 billion cubic feet of natural gas per day last year, according to federal data, per Fox News.
Environmental groups were frustrated by the Biden administration’s decision to green-light the pipeline.
“Not only is the Alaska LNG project unnecessary given the widespread transition to clean-energy alternatives we expect to see in the years to come, it’s also a major threat to ecosystems and climate in Alaska,” said Erin Colón, a senior attorney for the environmental law firm that has opposed the project in court, according to Fox News.
“The state’s greenhouse gas emissions from fossil fuels would balloon by nearly 30% over today’s levels in an era where all other states will be scrambling to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. It’s frustrating to see the Department of Energy rubber-stamp a massive fossil fuel infrastructure project of this kind when it clearly conflicts with the urgent need to tackle the climate crisis,” she concluded.
