Legislature gives full approval to Willow resolution, signaling Alaska support for major new oil project

After more than a month in session, the state Legislature passed its first measure Feb. 27, a resolution in support of ConocoPhillips’ Willow oil project on the North Slope. It is the first action to get approval by both the House and Senate other than an approval of the Legislature’s rules, a procedural step that allows the body to operate.

House Joint Resolution 6, or HJR-6, passed the 20-member state Senate unanimously, just as it earlier passed the 40-member state House without opposition.

Resolutions are only statements by lawmakers and have no force of law but this one took on special significance because all three members of the state’s congressional delegation had asked for it to demonstrate widespread support for Willow, which is in the National Petroleum-Reserve Alaska and with a final federal approval pending.

Alaska’s U.S. Senators Dan Sullivan and Lisa Murkowski, as well as Maty Petrola, the state’s lone member in the U.S. House, said they are battling a vigorous campaign by conservation groups to convince the Biden administration to withhold approval, or at least give it in a way that the project is uneconomic.

HJR-6 was sponsored by Rep. Josiah Patkotak (I-Utqiaġvik), and urges President Joe Biden and the U.S. Department of the Interior to approve the Willow Project by selecting the “Alternative E” plan that is preferred by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management in a Final Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement, or SEIS. This plan allows for three drilling sites, which helps the project remain profitable.

The Biden administration is not bound to select the alternative recommended in the FSEIS in its final Record of Decision. It can select a “no alternative” option, which effectively kills the project, or it can select an alternative with two instead od three drill sites. That indirectly kills the project because ConocoPhillips would not be able to produce enough oil with two sites to make Willow economically viable.

There’s also uncertainty as to the timing of the final decision. Federal law requires a minimum of 30 days to pass before the government issues a Record of Decision, but there is no maximum time for the decision. The soonest the decision can come is March 6 but it could also come later.

If the Interior Department waits too long ConocoPhillips might not have enough time to do preparatory work like building gravel roads and pads that can only be done in winter, when the North Slope tundra is frozen.

In voting for the resolution rural Alaska legislators wanted to make a point of countering claims by opponents that Alaska Native people oppose Willow and other North Slope projects. Some tribal leaders have voiced opposition but most North Slope residents and community leaders have voiced support.

To help get the point across in Washington, D.C., rural legislators from Alaska’s “bush caucus” in the Legislature will deliver House Joint Resolution 6 to the state’s congressional delegation in Washington, D.C., which is aimed at capturing attention in the nation’s capital.

Willow is an oil project being done properly, said state Sen. Donny Olson, D-Golovin, who represents the North Slope in the Senate. “For thousands of years, the Inupiat people have depended upon and protected the subsistence resources of the lands and waters of the North Slope for survival and cultural well-being,” Olson said.

“The scrutiny of development projects like Willow ensures safe animals, healthy people, and a pristine environment. This project is not only environmentally responsible but will help the economy of the North Slope communities for decades to come.”

If it is developed Willow will produce 180,000 barrels a day of new oil, adding new state revenues, but what’s just as important is that it will create infrastructure in the 23-million-acre petroleum reserve that will lead to more discoveries. So far only relatively small oil and gas finds have been made in the NPR-A. Willow is the first discovery of significance. The U.S. Geological Survey estimates the petroleum reserve contains 8.7 billion barrels of oil and 25 trillion cubic feet of natural gas.

Sen. Click Bishop, R-Fairbanks, says Willow is also important as a source of new employment in the petroleum industry, which now employs about half the 15,000 workers that it did seven years ago, in 2015.

“This project creates thousands of high-quality jobs for Alaskans. This is not only an opportunity for our current workforce but provides the chance for Alaska to grow our next generation of oilfield workers,” Bishop said.

“We need to take steps now to provide Alaskans with apprenticeship educational opportunities and liveable wages. Getting the Willow Project off the ground will provide that needed stability in our communities and workforce, now and in the future,” he said.

While Willow is supported by rural legislators lawmakers from urban parts of the state are also supportive. So far the Biden administration has supported Willow, and state Sen. Bill Wielechowski, D-Anch., hopes that will continue in the face of heavy opposition lobbying.

“I appreciate the Biden Administration showcasing their support of this project and helping it move forward,” Wielechoski said. “This project has broad support from differing political ideologies, parties, industries, and groups throughout the state. We hope this additional push by the legislature will prevent further delays in getting this project up and running,” he said.

Wielechowski’s statement of support is important by itself because he has been at odds with the state’s oil and gas industry at times in the past, but Willow is something he supports.