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Alaska:Presidents Trump and Xi Witness Signing of Alaska Energy Deal By MARY KAUFFMAN - It was an historic day for the State of Alaska and the United States as Governor Bill Walker signed the five-party joint development agreement (JDA) for the Alaska liquefied natural gas (Alaska LNG) project yesterday in Beijing, China. This signing is the most significant step toward finally monetizing Alaska’s vast resources of natural gas. President Donald Trump and President Xi Jinping were present for the signing ceremony at the Great Hall of the People, underscoring the international importance of the agreement. 

“Because Alaskans need well-paying jobs and affordable energy to power our homes, schools and businesses, this Alaska LNG project is critical,” Governor Walker said.

The agreement was signed by representatives from the State of Alaska, the Alaska Gaseline Development Corporation (AGDC), the Bank of China, the China Investment Corporation, and the oil and gas company Sinopec. Under the agreement, the parties have agreed to work cooperatively on LNG marketing, financing, investment model and China content in Alaska LNG, and get a periodic result by 2018. 

“This agreement has all five necessary signatories - the buyer, the lender, the investor, the developer and the state,” Governor Walker said. “This is a big project with big players and big benefits. There are more steps before a final investment decision is reached, but having the largest LNG buyer in the world participating in this project means the Alaska LNG project has favorable market engagement at the highest level. This project will finally allow Alaska to reach its full potential as a state. As we move from having one of the highest unemployment rates in the country to the lowest, we will build a Stronger Alaska.”

Governor Walker said, “The gasline is key to building a Stronger Alaska. I thank President Trump for the full support he and his administration have shown for this project, as it brings the United States one step closer to energy dominance. When President Xi visited Anchorage six months ago, he shared with me his desire for deepening the mutually beneficial ties between China and Alaska. I thank him for expediting that vision to reality. I especially thank Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross and his team for their strong belief in the Alaska LNG project, and all of the hard work they put into making this day happen." 

Alaska LNG is designed as a 20 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) integrated LNG system comprised of a three train liquefaction plant in Southcentral Alaska at Nikiski; an approximately 800 mile, 1.1 meter diameter gas pipeline; a gas treatment plant on the North Slope of Alaska; and various interconnecting facilities to connect the Prudhoe Bay gas complex to the gas treatment plant.

“Today’s agreement brings the potential customer, lender, equity investor, and developer together with a common objective of crafting mutually beneficial agreements leading to increased LNG trade between Alaska and China,” said Keith Meyer, president, AGDC.   

“This is an agreement that will provide Alaska with an economic boom comparable to the development of the Trans-Alaska Pipeline System in the 1970s,” said Alaska Governor Bill Walker.

The joint development agreement was signed by the State of Alaska, AGDC and three of the largest Chinese energy and finance companies - Sinopec, Bank of China and China Investment Corporation (CIC). - More...
Thursday PM - November 09, 2017

Philanthropy Day honors Foundation Donors
Alec Brindle Jr, Alec Brindle Sr and Matt Eisenhower, Foundation Director
Photo courtesy Ketchikan Medical Center

“There are so many giving people in our community we wanted to have an opportunity to thank them publicly for their generosity.”

The luncheon at the Sunny Point Conference Room was to thank donors and to especially highlight the recent gift from the Brindle family that honors Cornelia “Pinky” Brindle who died after a five-year struggle with cancer in 2008.

The Brindles, represented at the luncheon by Pinky’s husband Alec Brindle Sr and her son Alec Brindle Jr, unveiled a Legacy Panel that will be mounted near the main lobby at the Medical Center. The family donated $100,000 for a Cancer Resource Room to provide support and information to cancer patients and their families.

An oncology nurse will be a Cancer Care Coordinator for patients and family to help with travel coordination, infusion schedules, appointments, and supplies.

Dan and Karen Eichner also attended the luncheon. Their family are also Legacy donors. They funded the Ken Eichner Healing Garden adjacent to the Ketchikan Medical Center café. The nearly completed garden overlooks the Narrows and will provide a quiet, lovely outdoor area for patients, their families, and staff. - More...
Thursday PM - November 09, 2017

Southeast Alaska: F. Leach Selected as UFA Exec Director effective Jan. 2018 - United Fishermen of Alaska (UFA), Alaska’s statewide commercial fishing trade association, announced the hiring of Frances Leach as its Executive Director effective January 5, 2018.  Ms. Leach, a Juneau resident, was raised in a commercial fishing family in Ketchikan. 

“I am excited for the opportunity to represent UFA.  Having grown up in a commercial fishing family in a coastal community, I understand the importance of commercial fishing to Alaska’s economy and cultural heritage.  The commercial fishing industry faces many challenges at the state and federal level, and I look forward to addressing these challenges as UFA’s Executive Director,” said Leach. - More...
Thursday PM - November 09, 2017

Southeast Alaska: Settlement Agreement Reached in Cannery Creek Hatchery Oil Spill - The State of Alaska entered into a global civil settlement agreement with Prince William Sound Aquaculture Corporation (PWSAC) and its employees, Dale Lords, David Reggiani, and Christine Mitchell, resolving criminal charges against the corporation and the individuals. The State charged PWSAC and the individuals for providing false information to Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation (ADEC) regulators, failing to report a hazardous substance discharge, and oil pollution relating to a December 2013 discharge of diesel fuel underneath a housing unit at Cannery Creek Hatchery (CCH). 

The State originally filed criminal charges against David Reggiani, Christine Mitchell, and Dale Lords on September 26, 2016, amended on October 25, 2016, and against PWSAC on February 16, 2017. The State alleged that on December 10, 2013, between 350-400 gallons of oil were released from an aboveground fuel tank leading into the crawlspace under a staff housing unit at CCH.

An employee of PWSAC reported the spill to Christine Mitchell, Acting CCH Manager, and David Reggiani, PWSAC General Manager. The State alleged that Christine Mitchell and David Reggiani in their individual capacity and as agents of PWSAC failed to report the oil discharge. The State of Alaska further alleged that the spill resulted from negligence on the part of PWSAC through its agents, Christine Mitchell and David Reggiani, due to their failure to maintain fuel lines to prevent corrosion and leaks despite knowledge of past leaks. Finally, the State alleged that Christine Mitchell, David Reggiani, and Dale Lords provided false information to the State when they reported to the State they were unable to confirm the spill. - More...
Thursday PM - November 09, 2017

PETER ROFF: Congress Looks at Russian Election Interference - Those who claim to have been shocked the Russians might have meddled in the 2016 election are either playing for the cameras or not paying attention. They, and the Soviets before them have employed "active measures"- a technical term that applies to all kinds of espionage - in the United States and the West practically from the moment the Czar was overthrown.

For those who came in late, this kind of stuff is not new. And the U.S. does it, too. We've spent money on everything from propaganda to keep the Communists from coming to power in Italy after World War II to trying to oust Benjamin Netanyahu from the top job in the Israeli government. 

Earlier this week, a congressional committee took a deep dive into the alleged Russian interference. The matter of foreign manipulation of the U.S. electorate is one on which Congress should tread carefully. It's a lot more complex than the Washington politicians and the media stars who travel the Acela between New York and the nation's capital want you to believe. 

The idea was first pushed by people looking for a reason Hillary Clinton lost an election she seemed destined by fate to win. It's true the Russians put ads on the web. It's true the Trump campaign met with some Russians and may, as charged, have sought a few of them out to see if they had dirt on Clinton not available through normal channels. 

Yet, it's also true the Democrats were up to much the same thing. The so-called dossier on Trump prepared by Christopher Steele, variously described as a former British intelligence operative, was produced through a private opposition research effort secretly financed by the Democratic National Committee and the Clinton campaign.

That aside, some members of Congress think social media companies are to blame. As the conduits through which information about both Clinton and Trump spread through the electorate, they are supposed to shoulder much of the responsibility for what occurred.

But look at the numbers. Facebook, one of several social media companies called this past week to testify at one point volunteered that ads with content attributable to the Russians in some way went into the newsfeeds of 29 million Americans over a two-year period.

When they finally got all the way downstream they'd been seen, the company estimates, by close to 126 million people, maybe more. That's at least a third of the country but, over the same period, Americans had more than 30 trillion items flow through their news feed. - More...
Thursday PM - November 09, 2017