Today’s Key Takeaways: New BLM Director a friend to Alaska. ConocoPhillips AK welcome new VP to oversee North Slope development. Australia passes tax incentives for critical minerals. Alaska Senate majority looking for new revenue.
NEWS OF THE DAY:
Trump names oil and gas advocate as next BLM director
Scott Streater, Mike Soraghan, E & E News Politico, February 12, 2025
President Donald Trump has picked an oil and gas industry advocate to head the Bureau of Land Management, which governs the use of around 245 million acres of federal land in the West.
The White House has nominated Kathleen Sgamma, the president of the Denver-based Western Energy Alliance, to be the BLM director, according to Congress.gov. Sgamma’s oil and gas trade group has long advocated for greater industry access to public lands and less regulation of oil and gas and mining interests.
Sgamma is a Massachusetts Institute of Technology-educated political science and policy expert who has never worked for BLM, but has been an unapologetic advocate for oil and gas development on federal land. Her confirmation by the Senate into the position would represent a seismic change in direction for the bureau after the last four years under the Biden administration, during which BLM prioritized developing green energy to combat climate warming.
OIL:
Asset Development Exec Joins ConocoPhillips Alaska
Alaska Business, February 10, 2025
Heather Tash recently joined ConocoPhillips Alaska leadership as Vice President, Asset Development. In this role, Tash oversees development across the North Slope for the state’s largest oil producer.
Prior to her current role, Tash worked for ConocoPhillips in Texas’ Permian Basin. While there she held roles in process, facilities, production, and reservoir engineering.
“We are delighted to have Heather join our team in Alaska, and looking forward to her leadership,” says Erec Isaacson, president of ConocoPhillips Alaska. “Her experience in process and production is an incredible asset for our operations on the North Slope.”
Tash earned a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering from the Colorado School of Mines. She began work in the oil and gas industry upon graduation in 2007. Her work in the field has included positions with ExxonMobil and Concho Resources, a Texas oil company acquired by ConocoPhillips in 2021.
GAS:
Alaska’s LNG terminal shaking off years-long stasis with revamp to stave off gas shortages
Melissa Cavcic, Offshore Energy, February 7, 2025
Three players have signed on the dotted line to enable an existing liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal in Nikiski on Alaska’s Kenai Peninsula to change hands and be given a kiss of life through redevelopment, which will unleash new flows of natural gas to the Southcentral market, keeping looming supply shortages at bay.
Thanks to an agreement Harvest Alaska (Harvest) has struck with Marathon Petroleum Corporation (MPC) and Chugach Electric Association (Chugach), the existing Kenai LNG terminal, currently owned by a subsidiary of MPC, will be brought into Harvest’s fold.
The acquisition move is being made to bolster Southcentral Alaska’s energy supplies through the repurposing of existing assets to enable delivery of additional natural gas supplies as early as 2026, with full-scale operations beginning as early as 2028.
The proposal would enable Harvest to own, develop, and operate the LNG terminal and infrastructure, allowing Chugach, MPC, and any other Railbelt customers to secure further natural gas supplies to help meet the market demand.
The redevelopment project will leverage MPC’s legacy LNG export infrastructure to alleviate the potential short-term natural gas shortage facing Southcentral Alaska. This infrastructure, combined with existing U.S. Federal Energy and Regulatory Commission (FERC) approvals, is perceived to position the facility to meet near-term energy needs while longer-term alternatives are developed.
Jason Rebrook, Harvest’s CEO, highlighted: “Harvest has a long history of operating critical oil and gas infrastructure across the state and this announcement furthers our commitment to ensuring Alaska has the energy it needs. By repurposing Marathon’s existing LNG facility, we aim to provide certainty to the Southcentral gas market while meeting the needs of Railbelt utilities.
“We are proud to collaborate with Marathon, Chugach Electric and other Southcentral utilities to bring this project online to ensure the reliable delivery of natural gas in timely and cost-efficient manner.”
MINING:
Australia passes tax incentives law for critical minerals
Reuters, February 11, 2025
Australia’s parliament has passed laws that would give production tax breaks for critical minerals and renewable hydrogen, in a boost for energy transition plans as it aims to hit net zero emissions by 2050, and reduce dependence on China.
The law, passed on Tuesday, will create tax incentives worth 10% of processing and refining costs for 31 critical minerals from the fiscal year ending June 2028 to 2040, for up to 10 years per project, the centre-left Labor government said.
For renewable hydrogen, a tax incentive worth A$2 ($1.26) per kg of renewable hydrogen produced will be offered.
“By processing more of these minerals here in Australia, we will create jobs and diversify global supply chains,” Resources Minister Madeleine King said in a statement.
Major economies are seeking to invest billions to support critical minerals projects and compete with China, the world’s largest producer of rare earths.
Critical minerals and rare earths are used in solar panels and batteries needed to lower carbon emissions, and are required for the construction of submarines and aircraft.
POLITICS:
Alaska Senate leaders suggest new revenue measures to address looming budget deficit
Iris Samuels, Sean Macguire, Anchorage Daily News, February 11, 2025
Alaska Senate leaders signaled Tuesday that they were open to considering new revenue measures this year to help stabilize the state’s looming budget deficit.
“We haven’t addressed revenue for decades,” Sen. Lyman Hoffman, a Bethel Democrat, told reporters. “I think it’s high time the Legislature looks at raising new revenues if we want to accomplish the many things that we want to do. If not, I don’t see a clear path forward to balancing not only this year’s budget, but next year’s budget.”
Budget analysts predict that without additional revenue, the state could face a $500 million shortfall during the coming year, even without increasing the state’s education budget — a top priority for leaders of both the House and Senate.
Hoffman, who has served in the Legislature for more than 38 years, said “the state of Alaska is probably facing its largest fiscal problem in 30 years.”
He said the fiscal crisis is driven in part by the Legislature’s efforts this year to significantly increase education funding, a task lawmakers have not undertaken in more than a decade. A bill backed by House leaders would increase the state’s education budget by around $150 million in the coming fiscal year compared to the current one, and hundreds of millions more in the following two years.
Hoffman said the Senate majority had already discussed new revenue measures during a retreat before the beginning of the session.
“I’m glad to report that new revenues are on the Senate’s list of things that need to be addressed this year,” he said.