Calgary-based Alaskan Northwest Natural Gas Transportation Co.plans to keep up to-date its 20-year-old application for a pipelineright-of-way on Alaskan lands in its efforts to secure a front rowseat if a natural gas pipeline is ever approved. The originalapplication was filed in 1981 and remains active and in goodstanding, calling for a parallel route to the Alaska Highway.

The company filed an application this week with the Alaska StatePipeline Coordinator in Anchorage to continue its application for a235-mile-long pipeline right-of-way. It already holds a federalgrant of right-of-way, covering more than 400 miles in the state.

“Alaskan Northwest has maintained its permits and rights-of-wayover the years in order to capture the timing advantage and gainmomentum once the price of gas makes an Alaska natural gas pipelineviable,” said project manager John Ellwood. He said the company haskept the application in force so that when the time was right, itcould secure additional permits or approvals necessary to build thepipeline.

If and when the proposal becomes reality remains questionable,however, the potential natural gas reserves on the North Slope areconsiderable. Experts estimate the North Slope to contain 100 Tcf,and Alaska could supply up to 4 Bcf/d to the Lower 48 with apipeline. The projected route would run parallel to the existingAlcan Highway, and would not cross any national conservation systemunits.

If the permit is given approval, Alaskan Northwest would thensecure agreements with producers to supply the pipeline, somethingseveral producers already are considering, as witnessed by anannouncement in December by BP, Phillips Alaska and Exxon MobilCorp. (see Daily GPI, Dec. 7, 2000). The announcement marked thefirst time that the three North Slope producers agreed to study theprospect of constructing an Alaskan pipeline. Until now, each hasbeen reviewing the project separately.

In the first meeting of the newly-formed Alaska Highway NaturalGas Policy Council earlier this month, Alaska Gov. Tony Knowles,who also is advocating pipeline construction, charged his newlyappointed 28-member panel of community, business and labor leaderswith the task of looking into public policy questions surroundingthe development and transportation of natural gas in the NorthSlope (see Daily GPI, March 9).

Alaskan Northwest is owned by subsidiaries of Foothills PipeLines Ltd. and TransCanada PipeLines Ltd., which was designatedowner and operator of the project under the Alaska Natural GasTransportation Act. Foothills was given responsibility for theCanadian portion of the project.

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