Our gas fields are depleted, now what?

I recently attended an energy task force meeting at Anchorage City Hall in order to get up to speed on the current information concerning energy production and costs here in the rail belt and the Kenai Peninsula.

As many already know, we are being asked to conserve energy and that there will be rolling brownouts on the electrical grid due to insufficient fuel to generate power. But just how bad is this problem? Well, many of you who know me knows I’m not a person to be given to thinking scary thoughts — they only make you scared. So, I am not going to scare you, but we are at somewhat of a critical mass on this one. The Cook Inlet gas fields, which we in Southcentral all depend on for heat and especially electrical generation, are damned depleted.

Fairbanks, due to high costs of energy, is attempting to gasify its grid and needs gas, and then there is the Donlin Creek Mine. OK then, Donlin will be operable for at least 27 years, employ 800 people and infuse $6.7 billion in construction money into the economy. Sounds great. We need the development; however, it, too, needs power.

It was decided after scouring the options of coal, biomass, wind or diesel power generation — those being abandoned — that they would build a gas pipeline. (Environmental issues you know.) So, a 325-mile pipeline from, you guessed it, Cook Inlet, will feed the mine the 152 megawatts of power it needs to operate. So, you have us, the Mat-Su, to feed all of Anchorage hungry, Kenai power needs, Fairbanks and Donlin. Anybody else want it? Oh yeah, the Japanese get half. It’s a 43-year-long contract.

Problem is, the gas field in Cook Inlet is depleted, almost. That field is dropping off at about 17 percent per year; faster than throughput is declining in the Trans-Alaska Pipeline. The attempts to “drill baby drill” are woefully behind in no small part due to the federal government and other assorted agencies jerking around, flagging drill rig ships and other “issues” like the recent lawsuit brought by the Chickaloon Natives with an environmental group moving to block further gas field development.

Our local power companies are having to plan for shipping in gas to Alaska and using diesel, yes diesel, fuel to power us up. What?! Isn’t everyone statewide trying to get away from the high cost of diesel? What did I miss?

All we hear from the Bush communities and other cities in Alaska is that the cost of diesel is killing them. Now it will start killing us. Know this — the plan is to use a mix of natural gas when available and diesel fuel to bring us power. Diesel costs about $30 per mmBtu; 1 million Btu equals about 293 kilowatts, not even one megawatt. Anyone with a computer can get the conversion tables and do the math. The average home uses 1,500 to 2,000 Kw per month. You then divide the dollars spent paying your bill into your kilowatt usage and then you get your rate. The state plan is to liquefy gas on the Slope and truck it down the haul road. Hmmm. According to the mayor of Fairbanks, that’s about 100 trucks a day for them. To power up just Anchorage, to put it lightly, as the Anchorage mayor said, “That’s hundreds of trucks a day for them.”

OK Mat-Su, and remember, we are just another part of this matter. How many trucks are we going to need? I guess there will be a big demand for ice road truckers. Gee, maybe we could get a spin-off television show.

So where are we really at?

U.S. Sen. Mark Begich was recently at the Greater Wasilla Chamber of Commerce lunch as its guest speaker, and I asked him what the federal government can do to help us out, like letting us drill and develop. He is aware of the energy problem. After all, he was Anchorage mayor and this issue with the Cook Inlet gas field ain’t nuthin’ new, just worse.

The senator said he has spoken to the powers that be in Washington, D.C., who are standing by and keep asking him what our project is, like drilling and a new pipeline to move gas and oil economically. You know he can’t tell them. Why can’t he or Lisa or Don tell them? Because no one seems to be telling them! The federal representatives cannot make good on the promises made to them for our benefit because someone here lost either the map, the compass or the field radio or all three.

It reminds me of being in the U.S. Army in the field deep in the woods on a cloudy day so one can’t see the landmarks and everybody asks the West Point graduate, “What now lieutenant?” So back to us here in the Mat-Su.

We all know our new power plant is being built in Anchorage. Then why, one may ask. Because, my friends, former borough representatives and co-op board members decided that we didn’t need a big old dirty power plant right here. Also, the original plan was to make it gas and coal fired. Why coal? Because with the new technology which burns it clean, and there’s more coal here than we can possible dig or use right under our feet. But the old regime didn’t like coal either. So here we are, with our power plant in Anchorage coming online with gas, which has ebbed low (the mental picture reminds me of the smells of low tide) and diesel fuel. Those planners responsible know who they are. Some of them actually still live among us and, yes, want to be in control of yours and my destiny.

Well, we could listen to those folks who could talk the horns of a billy goat or just turn to the old sergeant when lost and ask, “What now Sarge?” Yeah, what now?

Verne Rupright has been Wasilla mayor since 2008.