Alaska Gov. Bill Walker, in an editorial published in the state’s newspapers, is talking up an alternative to the producer- and TransCanada Corp.-backed Alaska LNG project (see Daily GPI,Feb. 11). He wrote that while the state’s own plan for an in-state pipeline — the Alaska Stand Alone Pipeline (ASAP) — is too small to succeed as currently conceived, in his opinion, it could be scaled up to include exports. The ASAP project is 100% owned by Alaska and was designed as a small-volume pipeline to deliver North Slope gas to Fairbanks, Southcentral and other communities within the state (see Daily GPI, Dec. 29, 2014). Walker said the state supports the Alaska LNG effort, but there are doubts about whether the mega-project will advance. He wrote that the state will “increase the viability of the ASAP project…[M]y intention is that ASAP be market-driven, with Alaska 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.”