Hawker offers plan to halve cost of Southcentral gas storage

March 13, 2010

Rep. Mike Hawker says areas of the Kenai Peninsula resemble the Rust Belt, with large numbers of empty buildings -- buildings that can be used to store natural gas in Southcentral Alaska. (Daniel Hernandez/KTUU-DT)

by Ted Land
Friday, March 12, 2010

JUNEAU, Alaska -- Sponsors of a plan for a large-scale natural gas storage facility say it won't cost as much as previously thought.

The Cook Inlet Recovery Act would encourage companies to build a natural gas storage facility in southcentral Alaska, and would have offered up to $30 million in tax credits to do so.

During a House Resources Committee hearing Friday afternoon, sponsor Rep. Mike Hawker offered a different version of the bill which cuts that number in half.

The plan is to use old wells on the Kenai Peninsula to store gas for use on very cold winter days, when high demand threatens supply. The bill would also offer incentives to spur gas exploration in Cook Inlet.

"It's a Rust Belt," Hawker said. "It is literally a empty building after empty building after empty building, and there is absolutely nothing happening there in the inlet. And that used to be one of the most vibrant economic zones in the State of Alaska."

Gas utility Enstar is already working on a gas storage project, and says such a system will ultimately become a necessity. The company says it welcomes any assistance from the Legislature and will continue to track the bill.

The committee took no action on the bill Friday, and will hear it again at later date.

Contact Ted Land at tland@ktuu.com

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