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in the Inlet. From there, gas would flow through an existing pipeline from the platform into the regional gas transmission sys- tem, under the plan. About 22 billion cu- bic feet per year of gas could be supplied, Rob Bryngelson, Cook Inlet LNG’s project lead, said in a statement. The problem faced by regional utilities is that gas production from Cook Inlet’s aging fields is declining and expected to fall below the region’s needs by 2028. State officials hope the need for LNG imports would be temporary, a stopgap until a hoped-for large gas pipeline can be built from the North Slope. Utilities can’t wait, however. They are required by state regulators to be able to supply consumers’ energy needs, meaning natural gas in Southcentral Alaska. Much of Alaska’s population lives in the region and depends on gas for space heating and, to a large extent, power generation. Only one of the three competing im- port plants is likely to be approved by the
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) and built. All of the projects are competing to secure approvals and to line up LNG suppliers and customers. Sean Kolassa, president of Harvest Midstream Co., a Hilcorp Energy affiliate, said the company could convert the exist- ing export plant to an import facility for a capital cost of between $300 million and $350 million, and be able to handle 20 bil- lion cubic feet per year to the regional util- ities. Kolassa said the plant could be ex- panded to a capacity of handling 73 billion cubic feet per year with the addition of a third LNG storage tank to the two now at the site. The added tank would cost about $150 million, he said. He said Harvest has the ability to get its project built and operating in two years because of the advantage of having exist- ing infrastructure at the former gas export plant and an existing FERC license that needed only an amendment to its license. Chugach Electric CEO Arthur Miller has said that timing meshes with his utility’s
need for more gas. John Sims, President of ENSTAR, has a different view. He said the competing plan for a new-build project by Glenfarne would cost about $500 million. Although it is not as far along as Harvest’s plan, it would have the advantage of being larger and able to import about 120 billion cubic feet per year, enough to supply all of the region’s needs with capacity for taking on new customers such as mining projects. Also, Glenfarne is now working with the State of Alaska on the large Alaska LNG Project which could have a large 42- inch gas pipeline built from the North Slope and a large LNG export plant built at Nikiski. If Alaska LNG is built, the facilities planned for LNG imports, such as a ma- rine terminal and storage tanks, could be- come part of the export plant, Sims said. Its expected $500 million in costs could be “rolled into” the larger project. This could result in a substantial savings to gas and electric consumers, he said.
COOK INLET LNG IMPORT PLANS TAKING SHAPE Photo Courtesy Marathon The mothballed LNG export plant at Nikiski could return to the production fold through a partnership between Harvest Midstream Co. and Chugach Electric Association.
Three projects seeking to alleviate declines in Alaska's supply BY TIM BRADNER PLANS BY COMPANIES TO IMPORT LIQUE- FIED NATURAL GAS (LNG) INTO COOK INLET ARE MOVING TO AN ADVANCED STAGE. UTILITIES ARE LOOKING TO SHIP IN LNG TO MEET AN EX- PECTED SHORTFALL IN REGIONAL NATURAL GAS PRODUCTION IN SOUTHCENTRAL ALASKA.
There are two projects planned, now joined by a third, state legislators were told in briefings. The most advanced project is one by Harvest Midstream Co. in partner- ship with Chugach Electric Association, the state’s largest electric utility. Harvest recently acquired the former ConocoPhil- lips LNG export plant at Nikiski, in South- central Alaska, and is asking regulators to approve a conversion of the plant — moth- balled since 2015 — to import liquefied gas. A second proposal is by Glenfarne, a U.S. energy infrastructure developer, to
build a new, standalone import facility, also at Nikiski, in an agreement with EN- STAR Natural Gas Co., the natural gas dis- tribution company serving Southcentral Alaska. A new contender has now entered the competition. Cook Inlet LNG, a partner- ship of Louisiana-based Gardes Holdings and Glacier Oil & Gas Corp., a small In- let oil and gas producer. Cook Inlet LNG announced a plan in late January to bring a Floating Storage Regasifcation Unit (FSRU) to Cook Inlet and moor the facili- ty at Glacier’s producing Osprey platform
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ALASKA RESOURCE REVIEW MARCH 2026
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