FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: 10/23/2014
CONTACT: Max Croes — 907-570-2065
ANCHORAGE — Dan Sullivan walked away from negotiations on National Petroleum Reserve (NPR-A) lands open to oil leasing in 2012, a point he wanted Alaskans to forget at the resources forum today at the Captain Cook.
“This letter serves as written notice the State of Alaska (State) is withdrawing effectively immediately as a ‘cooperating agency’ from the planning agency for the National Petroleum Reserve (NPR-A).” [State of Alaska, 9/12/2023]
“When Dan Sullivan had the opportunity to take on oil and gas in the NPR-A, he walked away from the table and threw in the towel. Alaska doesn’t need leaders who will quit on them and expect others to do their work for them - they need leaders like Mark Begich who will fight to the bone to develop Alaska’s vast natural resources,” said Max Croes, Communications Director for Alaskans for Begich.
Sullivan not only wants to re-write history, he wants to ignore the fact that Alaska has the first ever oil production coming forward from the NPR-A ,which has attracted a billion dollars in investment from ConocoPhillips and created over 500 jobs to date.
Mark Begich has taken an aggressive approach to development in the NPR-A and successfully fought to move forward on CD-5 which will put 16,000 barrels of new oil a day into the Trans-Alaska Pipeline System. Progress is also being made on GMT-1 and GMT-2 which will bring an additional 30,000 barrels into taps.
August 2012: Interior Department Announced Plan That Would Make Available The “Vast Majority” Of NPR-A Oil. “In the federal Bureau of Land Management’s announcement last month, the agency said the ‘preferred’ alternative in an environmental impact statement scheduled to be completed by the end of the year would make about 11.8 million acres available for oil leasing. It said such a plan would make available the ‘vast majority’ of an estimated 549 million barrels of oil believed to be located in the reserve.” [Los Angeles Times, 9/13/12]
Headline: Alaska Dispatch: “No More Cooperation From Alaska OnNPR-A Development Plans?” [Alaska Dispatch, 9/12/14]
September 2012: State Of Alaska Withdrew As A “Cooperating Agency” From NPR-A Oil & Gas Development. “This letter serves as written notice the State of Alaska (State) is withdrawing effectively immediately as a ‘cooperating agency’ from the planning agency for the National Petroleum Reserve (NPR-A). [Gov. Sean Parnell Letter to U.S. Interior Secretary Ken Salazar, 9/12/12]
