Legislature(2009 - 2010)BARNES 124
01/27/2009 03:00 PM House ENERGY
| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| Overview; Aea Statewide Energy Plan Presentation by Steve Haagenson, Executive Director, Alaska Energy Authority | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| + | TELECONFERENCED | ||
ALASKA STATE LEGISLATURE
HOUSE SPECIAL COMMITTEE ON ENERGY
January 27, 2009
3:02 p.m.
MEMBERS PRESENT
Representative Bryce Edgmon, Co-Chair
Representative Charisse Millett, Co-Chair
Representative Kyle Johansen
Representative Jay Ramras
Representative Pete Petersen
Representative Chris Tuck
MEMBERS ABSENT
Representative Nancy Dahlstrom
COMMITTEE CALENDAR
OVERVIEW: AEA Statewide Energy Plan Presentation by Steve
Haagenson, Executive Director, Alaska Energy Authority
PREVIOUS COMMITTEE ACTION
No previous action to record
WITNESS REGISTER
STEVEN HAGGENSON, Executive Director; Statewide Energy
Coordinator
Alaska Energy Authority (AEA)
Alaska Industrial Development & Export Authority (AIDEA)
Department of Commerce, Community, & Economic Development
(DCCED)
Anchorage, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Presented the Alaska Energy Authority (AEA)
book titled Alaska Energy, January 2009.
ACTION NARRATIVE
3:02:23 PM
CO-CHAIR CHARISSE MILLETT called the House Special Committee on
Energy meeting to order at 3:02 p.m. Representatives Ramras,
Petersen, Tuck, Edgmon, and Millett were present at the call to
order. Representative Johansen arrived as the meeting was in
progress.
^Overview; AEA Statewide Energy Plan Presentation by Steve
Haagenson, Executive Director, Alaska Energy Authority
CO-CHAIR MILLETT welcomed members and visitors to the first
meeting of the House Special Committee on Energy. [On the
agenda was a presentation by the Alaska Energy Authority (AEA).]
3:02:42 PM
CO-CHAIR EDGMON anticipated working with committee members on
comprehensive solutions for affordable energy for all regions of
Alaska. He said there is an opportunity to meet and take
testimony from all of the different organizations, such as
private and public entities, currently involved in providing
energy throughout the state. After [the forthcoming hearings],
he offered his hope that the committee will come forward with a
framework, or a decision, to develop a policy for a
comprehensive and coordinated approach to an energy plan for
Alaska. Co-Chair Edgmon announced that the decision has been
made to have hearings throughout the session in Juneau, and to
also travel to Kotzebue, Nome, Bethel, and Dillingham. The
purpose is to hear how high energy prices and the energy crisis
is affecting utilities, consumers, communities, and existing
programs in rural Alaska. He listed some of the existing state
and federal energy assistance programs and their cost; however,
he concluded that there is more to be done as energy is now a
core safety issue for the state.
3:06:53 PM
CO-CHAIR MILLETT observed that the committee will be meeting on
Saturdays and during the interim in order to complete its
difficult work. She invited opening comments.
REPRESENTATIVE RAMRAS noted that the House has reconfigured, for
the 21st century, the House Special Committee on Energy from the
old House Special Committee on Oil and Gas.
3:08:20 PM
STEVEN HAGGENSON, Executive Director; Statewide Energy
Coordinator, Alaska Energy Authority (AEA), Alaska Industrial
Development & Export Authority (AIDEA), Department of Commerce,
Community, & Economic Development (DCCED), presented the Alaska
Energy Authority book: Alaska Energy, A first step toward energy
independence, January, 2009. Mr. Haggenson informed the
committee that the content of the book is not a plan, but looks
at the "use of local resources to make local energy for local
Alaskans." He pointed out that his agency wants to engage
Alaskans in energy solutions and to stimulate the state's
economy. The AEA determined [rates of] sustainable energy and
the current use of energy by asking communities for their local
sources of energy, what sources communities did not want to use
for energy, and why those sources should not be used. These
questions revealed potential local resources, such as the use of
willows for biomass feedstock in Bethel. Energy use was
determined by looking at power cost equalization (PCE) data, the
cost of electricity and heating fuel, and anecdotal information.
Community meetings and data from state agencies provided the
information needed to create a matrix for each community and its
resources. Technology teams were then formed to decide how the
resources, such as wind, hydro, geothermal, solar, coal, coal
bed methane, and natural gas, could be used and at what price.
3:12:35 PM
MR. HAAGENSON directed attention to the meter illustrated on
page 14, and explained that the colors on the meter represent
the price of a barrel of oil: $50 and below is green; $50 to
$150 is yellow; $150 and above is red. He warned that the
changing oil prices could divert the state's focus from the
development of alternative sources of energy to the cost of
current sources of energy. Using the meter helps [the reader]
understand the cost of the alternative fuel relative to the cost
of a barrel of oil. Page 15 illustrates the model for Akutan, a
community of 859 residents in the Aleutians East Borough, and
includes energy use estimates for electric, space heating, and
transportation. Possible solutions for Akutan are shown on page
16, and include upgrades to the current power plant or the use
of geothermal, hydro, and wind diesel hybrid sources of fuel.
He discussed the costs associated with each resource, and how
the projects must be properly sized for the region they will
serve, versus the benefit to the community of new construction
that will grow the economy.
3:18:24 PM
MR. HAAGENSON advised that the estimates provided do not include
subsidies or grant funds but are 100 percent debt financed. He
turned to the Railbelt region section on page 18 and explained
that the Railbelt has unique needs that are separate from the
rest of Alaska. An integrated resource plan for this region
would consider all of the needs and resources up and down the
Railbelt, such as the Susitna Hydroelectric (hydro) Project, the
Chakachamna Hydroelectric Project, the North Slope natural gas
Bullet Line, and liquefied natural gas (LNG) trucked from the
North Slope to Fairbanks. The AEA will develop short-, mid-,
and long-term plans for Fairbanks, Anchorage, and Kenai. On
page 23 a graph indicated that Alaska's total annual energy
consumption of over a trillion Btu per capita per year is the
highest in the U. S. As a final example of energy needs in
Alaska, Mr. Haagenson stated that to generate the amount of
energy needed by each Alaskan every day, the equivalent effort
of 65 Iditarod sled dogs is needed. Page 24 illustrated
Alaska's Energy Flow 2006 and listed the sources of energy
imported to, and exported from, the state.
3:22:58 PM
REPRESENTATIVE RAMRAS asked Mr. Haagenson to talk about the
information displayed on page 24, and further explain the
anticipated future growth as the alternative energy projects are
selected.
3:23:46 PM
MR. HAAGENSON opined that [the production of] hydro and biomass
renewable electricity will grow.
3:24:12 PM
REPRESENTATIVE RAMRAS advised that Alaska is presently using 25
percent renewable energy and the administration's goal is to
increase use to 50 percent renewable energy by 2025. However,
the chart of Alaska's energy flow in 2006 does not reflect the
present use of 25 percent renewable energy.
3:24:52 PM
MR. HAAGENSON explained that the illustration represented all of
the energy use in Alaska but the [25] percent renewable figure
typically refers to electricity only, including hydro in
Southeast and the Railbelt.
3:25:29 PM
CO-CHAIR EDGMON clarified that the schematic does not factor in
the reduced overall demand resulting from saving measures such
as insulation and weather-proofing.
3:26:06 PM
MR. HAAGENSON said, "... this is basically a supply-side look,
like the rest of this document, not a demand-side look." In
response to a question, he noted that there will be a demand-
side document issued at a later date.
3:26:47 PM
CO-CHAIR EDGMON ascertained that a document without the demand-
side [data] can not be an energy plan; therefore, he stressed
that the role of the committee and other entities must be to
complete the plan.
3:27:14 PM
MR. HAAGENSON agreed that this document is the first step; its
purpose is to provide clarity to Alaskans about what resources
are available and their options to achieving energy
independence. For historical background, he listed some
specific factors that contributed to the previous failed efforts
of alternative energy initiatives: state agencies did not
develop strong management capabilities; state agencies lacked
methods for assessing the technical and financial feasibility of
projects; coordination among state agencies was often lacking;
features of an alternative technology were often poorly matched
with a useful rural application; unrealistic expectations
existed about what an agency or technology could accomplish; and
too much responsibility was delegated to contractors while the
state often assumed the risk in the performance of the project.
To learn from the past, AEA is taking a new path toward a public
and private partnership with the state engaging municipalities,
co-ops, utilities, and Native corporations in search of
solutions. Mr. Haagenson turned his attention to the regional
summary of round 1 proposals found on page 38. The proposals
total $402,111,199; with the addition of round 2 proposals the
total is $775,000,000 for 240 applications. Steps to the
successful implementation of the Renewable Energy Fund are
depicted on page 39; the next steps to be completed are the
Least Cost Plan/IRP Feasibility for the Railbelt and the
Renewable Energy Fund, round 2. Further issues to be addressed
are [finding] outside methods of financing for projects and
working closely with the Department of Natural Resources (DNR)
to facilitate project site permitting.
3:31:44 PM
REPRESENTATIVE RAMRAS related his conversation with a member of
the Yukon River Inter-Tribal Watershed Council who informed him
of the Hydrokinetic Construction project in Ruby [ID number 84.]
Representative Ramras assumed that AEA "[was] pushing
hydrokinetic projects" and asked whether the village of Ruby may
[hypothetically] decide to build four hydro projects at a cost
of $2 million each. In this case, what would be required of
Ruby to fund the projects and obtain permits, he asked.
3:33:35 PM
MR. HAAGENSON referred back to page 39 and opined that the best
way to get a good project through is to begin with a business
plan, and a good understanding of the project at the time of the
application. During the project's evaluation by AEA, the goal
is to "make sure we have good projects with good people that
understand what they're doing in the project." He stressed that
a great project must also have a knowledgeable team behind it.
Permits from DNR must also be obtained to resolve possible
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) and "fish" issues.
He described two different hydrokinetic turbines and their
possible dangers to migrating fish.
3:35:58 PM
REPRESENTATIVE RAMRAS reiterated his questions about financing,
the application for the project, and the mechanics of providing
transmission lines for the transportation of power. Also,
sometimes companion legislation is necessary to prevent state
agencies from becoming mired at cross-purposes. He asked:
How do you decide whether Ruby is capable of coming up
with their 30 percent so that the state puts up their
70 percent and what do you do when the project goes 40
percent over budget? Who comes in then so you don't
have a partially finished hydrokinetic project ... ?
3:38:37 PM
MR. HAAGENSON responded to the first part of the question and
said that state financing will be [arranged] this year by a
capital funds mechanism. The second part of the question
relates to the strength of the project, and that is determined
by a meaningful evaluation process. Ruby must submit an
application for a good project with a financing mechanism in
place. Regarding transmission lines [specifically] for the 2008
Ruby project, the turbine floats on top of the water and only
works in the summer, so transmission lines will not present a
problem. He warned that construction of an underwater turbine
may present a challenge during winter.
3:40:39 PM
REPRESENTATIVE RAMRAS requested Mr. Haagenson return at a later
date and present a single, representative project from a small,
rural area, complete with PowerPoint slides and a flow chart
that explains the entire process from the beginning to "flipping
a light switch." The importance of this, he said, is to learn
the time frame for a project, including the possible issues with
DNR, so the committee can make recommendations to expedite the
permitting process.
3:42:44 PM
CO-CHAIR MILLETT stated one of her goals for the committee is to
"pull together the resources, statewide and federally, that we
have to make that puzzle come together."
3:43:23 PM
MR. HAAGENSON opined that the question put to him was how to
guarantee success; in fact, previous failures were caused by
poor coordination between agencies thus DNR and the AEA are
working together.
3:43:59 PM
CO-CHAIR EDGMON turned attention back to the resource matrix and
the dynamics of communities. He said that community leaders
have their own estimates of energy use that vary wildly from the
AEA book. He asked whether the technology teams actually
visited communities to collect data or if the estimates were
taken from other sources.
3:45:30 PM
MR. HAAGENSON responded that the electrical information was
taken from PCE documents; however, in Unalaska there is a
processor that is not "tied to the grid," and was not
incorporated in the data. This raises the importance of talking
to people on the ground to refine and update the document.
3:45:47 PM
CO-CHAIR EDGMON surmised that the matrices for individual
communities are based on a snapshot. He remarked:
The community of Unalaska is by volume the largest
port in the United States for the last 20 years, and
to not have been in direct contact with local
officials there in that very sophisticated community
with a large power base and a large demand ... what
level of confidence can I then take and apply to other
communities in this document?
3:46:41 PM
MR. HAAGENSON answered that the information from PCE is exactly
the information that the utility reported that they sold; if
there is self-generation in a community there is no way to know
that until the sites are visited.
3:47:05 PM
CO-CHAIR EDGMON expressed his dissatisfaction with the response
in terms of the larger issue of the accuracy for some of the
other communities. The information in the document may not be
wrong; however, there is a huge disparity.
3:47:46 PM
CO-CHAIR MILLETT asked Mr. Haagenson to discuss the methodology
used to arrive at the inventory of resources for each community.
3:48:03 PM
MR. HAAGENSON explained that to develop the matrix, AEA talked
with communities and explored the surrounding areas. All of the
hydrological sites across Alaska were studied and reviewed, as
were wind sites; in fact, modeling for wind sources was done in
a five mile radius around each village. He assured the
committee AEA has good data, although the data is not exact for
cities like Craig, where sawmill waste makes fuel from wood less
expensive; however, further details will be acquired for the
models. Mr. Haagenson characterized the book as a "high level
picture to say, 'These are things you should be looking at in
certain areas.' It's not the final answer." He added that the
Alaska Resource Inventory, DNR, and the U.S. Department of the
Interior, Department of Geological Survey, will identify all of
the geological sites in the state including coal, coal bed
methane, and natural gas.
3:49:48 PM
REPRESENTATIVE RAMRAS referred to a wind energy project in
California that utilizes fifteen hundred wind turbines and nine
miles of transmission lines to transport power to the grid. He
asked whether the 77 entities that were awarded grants included
construction to provide for the transmission of power in their
applications.
3:51:00 PM
MR. HAAGENSON confirmed that the applications are for "delivered
cost, so it includes the transmission if it's a remote. So, we
can do an apples-to-apples comparison with the alternatives
today." He turned the subject to page 57 where there was
detailed information on energy technologies, such as wind,
hydroelectric, and solar, and also information on vendors who
supply these technologies. Detailed case studies on Alaska are
also included. The book concludes with the acknowledgment of
participants and a compact disk that holds a copy of the
document and four reference databases. Mr. Haagenson stated
that the next step for AEA is to go to the communities and
create a regional plan that includes solutions to financing
questions, and that fosters cooperation between partners. He
then provided a hand-out titled Alaska Calista Regional Example
1-09. As an example, he noted that in Bethel usages are around
39,000,000 kilowatt hours (kW-hours) per year, and its needs are
about 217,913 [million] Btu (MmBtu). The book converts fuel
needs to a common base and he described how the region would
combine renewable sources of energy into a mini-grid to supply
sufficient energy for all of the communities in the region.
3:57:34 PM
REPRESENTATIVE JOHANSEN pointed out that on page 97 there is a
reference to a hydropower project at Mahoney Lake, which is near
Ketchikan. However, the project is not listed in the inventory.
3:58:44 PM
MR. HAAGENSON acknowledged the omission.
3:59:02 PM
REPRESENTATIVE JOHANSEN noted that [Mahoney Lake] is a 9.6
megawatt project with federal authorization of up to $384
million in appropriations; its omission in an assessment of
hydro power in Southeast is disconcerting.
3:59:40 PM
MR. HAAGENSON restated that there was not an oversight; in fact,
the project was not considered because it involves transmission
lines that connect Southeast and it is not a part of the local
picture.
4:00:32 PM
REPRESENTATIVE JOHANSEN asked:
If a project was not incorporated in a Southeast
Conference plan or a Tlingit Haida plan for whatever
reason, whether it be oversight or political exclusion
or whatever, [would] that preclude you from looking at
those projects?
4:00:40 PM
MR. HAAGENSON said no. The project will be included in the
updated version of the book, along with more information about
electrical usage by the Four Dam Pool Power Agency.
4:01:18 PM
REPRESENTATIVE JOHANSEN stressed that [the Mahoney Lake project]
has a FERC license, is ready to go, and must be included, along
with the Whitman Lake [proposed hydro project].
4:01:49 PM
REPRESENTATIVE RAMRAS asked for a definition of "postage stamp"
in the context of the cost of kilowatts.
4:03:28 PM
MR. HAAGENSON explained that postage stamp is a utility
statement that means "we all pay the same rate."
4:03:36 PM
REPRESENTATIVE RAMRAS further asked whether this reference
applies only to Railbelt utilities or also to rural communities
such as Ruby, Bethel, and Ketchikan.
4:04:11 PM
MR. HAAGENSON confirmed that the reference was to Railbelt
utilities coming under one umbrella for the generation and
transmission assets, and then providing postage stamp rates to
the [communities] that they serve. In further response, he
acknowledged that the book has flaws; however, in order to avoid
"analysis paralysis," AEA took the first step and issued a
"living document" that will be updated with current information.
The next milepost is for the agency to talk to Alaskans and give
them a chance to choose projects that they will support through
completion.
4:06:07 PM
REPRESENTATIVE RAMRAS shared his observation that under any
administration, state agencies have few decision-makers "at the
top of the [organizational] chart." He asked whether the 77
projects will be prioritized, sanctioned, and funded
simultaneously. Additionally, what affect will the hiring
freeze [ordered by the governor to be effective through June,
2009] have on AEA's ability to provide the necessary attention
to an extraordinarily long list of projects.
4:07:44 PM
MR. HAAGENSON clarified that the Renewable Energy Fund and the
Alaska Energy document are tied together loosely. The Alaska
Energy document is meant to engage Alaskans in the concept of
renewable energy so they will own the solutions and support the
construction of alternative energy plants. He agreed that
processing applications for the 77 projects submitted to the
Renewable Energy Fund is a sizeable workload for the staff at
AEA. The next step by AEA involves the grants and grant manager
assignments. He assured the committees that projects are ready
to go forward independently and are offered by very strong and
qualified applicants. If AEA has issues on project management
it will bring in contract labor to go around the hiring freeze.
4:11:02 PM
CO-CHAIR MILLETT observed that there was great anticipation of
the energy plan; therefore, there is frustration from [the
public] not understanding that the document is a matrix of
inventory and not policy. In addition, representatives and the
public need to understand the magnitude of writing a state
energy plan. The committee would like to support the AEA in
writing the plan and expediting the policy associated with it.
She opined that Alaskans should not wait longer for leadership
to develop state energy policy. Co-Chair Millett expressed her
assumption that when AEA visits communities, there will be
interest from the communities in further help with their current
energy costs, and she asked for the administration's stance on
additional state support.
4:13:19 PM
MR. HAAGENSON opined that help for communities should be in the
form of "vision" and assistance in financing energy solutions.
Because previous state energy plans have not produced results, a
different approach was chosen. The document is not lists of
projects recommended by state agencies, but choices so that
communities will "buy into" a project and take it to completion.
This approach will guarantee successful results. On the subject
of policy, Mr. Haagenson expressed his interest in working with
citizens and the committee to write high-level policy.
4:15:03 PM
CO-CHAIR MILLETT invited Mr. Haagenson to address House Bill
152(FIN) [signed into law on 5/22/08,] and the relevant
attachment.
MR. HAAGENSON called the committee's attention to his letter of
1/21/09 to the senate president and the speaker of the house
requesting a time extension for the Renewable Energy Fund Round
2 Application. He explained that the time extension, from
1/30/2009 to 3/3/2009, will allow AEA staff to complete the
evaluations for the 115 second round applications for FY 10
grants. At this time, he discussed the evaluation process for
FY 09 grants that were appropriated in the amount of $100
million. The evaluations began with a three-stage process
looking at completeness, eligibility, and responsiveness of the
application. The second stage considered technical and economic
feasibility. The third stage ranked the application by region
and recommended projects for grant funding. He then detailed
the duties of the evaluation staff.
4:19:55 PM
MR. HAAGENSON advised that caps on the amount of money granted
to a region were necessary to maintain "regional spreading;" one
exception to this is in Southeast where Angoon, Hoonah, and Kake
were designated a non-Southeast region. The cost of energy
became the final demographic and was weighted at 30 percent of
the total evaluation. He relayed the evaluators are pleased
with the results [of the selection process]; moreover, an
attempt was made to approve feasibility money, eliminate poor
projects, and comply with the intent of the legislation. The
AEA has 114 applications that will be put on the [World Wide
Web] to share, including comments from the evaluation committee.
The evaluation is a very open process, involving five or six
meetings of the Renewable Energy Fund Advisory Committee. He
then referred to the Proposed Grant Allocation Round 1 projects
and noted that this list has not been officially submitted to
the Legislative Budget and Audit Committee. The second round
has about 114 applications requesting a total of about $200
million; however, the amount of the second round grant is $50
million, and the request [for funding] will go to the
legislature on 3/3/09.
4:24:41 PM
CO-CHAIR EDGMON asked whether the list incorporated the $50
million that the governor has in her proposed budget.
4:25:02 PM
MR. HAAGENSON said, "... this list of 77 is for FY 09 money that
was appropriated; $50 million in the original, and last, main,
session and $50 million in the special session, last year. The
amount included in the [governor's budget] of $50 million will
be FY 10 money, which will be the second round."
4:25:17 PM
CO-CHAIR EDGMON affirmed that the evaluation process has not
"leaped forward, then, to the $50 million that is in the
pipeline in front of the legislature at the moment."
4:25:24 PM
MR. HAAGENSON concurred. In fact, AEA staff is working on round
2 evaluations now.
4:25:35 PM
REPRESENTATIVE PETERSEN referred to House Bill 152 and noted the
intent of the legislature was that for each of the next five
years, $50,000 million will be appropriated to [the Alaska
Renewable Energy Fund.] He asked whether the committee is
assuming additional funds will be budgeted in the coming years,
and warned that future legislatures can not be obligated by the
sitting legislature.
4:26:12 PM
MR. HAAGENSON expressed his understanding that $100,000 million
of FY 09 money has been appropriated. A new process will begin
to appropriate FY 10 money, based on the promise made by House
Bill 152.
4:26:51 PM
CO-CHAIR EDGMON asked Mr. Haagenson whether changes need to be
made to House Bill 152.
4:27:14 PM
MR. HAAGENSON suggested there are definitions and language that
need clarification in the bill.
4:27:45 PM
CO-CHAIR EDGMON cautioned that there is no requirement in the
bill for AEA to follow-up on the approved projects.
4:28:11 PM
MR. HAAGENSON advised that AEA will require, under the terms of
the grant, the reporting back of data on the status of each
project.
4:28:50 PM
REPRESENTATIVE RAMRAS indicated that he was troubled by the idea
that agencies will "contract out" when a hiring freeze is in
effect. He then reiterated his request for a PowerPoint
presentation describing a typical project in a rural area and
one in an urban area, complete from beginning to end. Though
skeptical of the program, he expressed his appreciation for the
concept of "good projects with good teams" and praised Mr.
Haagenson's abilities and his passion for, and knowledge of, the
subject of renewable energy.
4:32:49 PM
REPRESENTATIVE JOHANSEN agreed with the previous speaker and
echoed other members' frustrations. Hydro is the obvious first
solution for Southeast; in fact, there is a long history of
support from local and federal government for hydro power. He
pointed out that some projects listed in round 1 are unknown,
but after years of analysis, the general understanding is that
"hydro and interties connecting is the way to go in our neck of
the woods." Nevertheless, a $25,000 million biomass
gasification project was approved in round 1; this is a
disconnect and this project should not be "in the mix," he said.
Representative Johansen remarked:
... not a criticism, I just don't understand how the
process worked and it's not meant to diminish any of
the work that you guys did, but it's frustrating that
there's not that policy direction ... .
4:35:52 PM
MR. HAAGENSON assured the committee that the gasification
project in Ketchikan was not recommended for funding and would
not move forward after its evaluation.
4:36:23 PM
REPRESENTATIVE JOHANSEN suggested that a policy that directed
AEA to support hydro in Southeast could have prevented a waste
of time.
4:36:39 PM
CO-CHAIR EDGMON appreciated Mr. Haagenson's answers, and stated
his frustration is not with the effort, but for constituents who
are hurting from energy costs. Although there will be further
discussion he is interested, in addition to the long-term
solution, the near-term term umbrella approach to keep
communities alive. He anticipated that testimony from rural
areas will emphasize that, even though the legislature funded
existing programs in the amount of $1 billion, the state is not
where it needs to go; moreover, state agencies do not seem to be
pulling together in the same direction. Co-Chair Edgmon
expressed his hope that the committee will have an opportunity
to talk about fuel hedging, energy audits, weather stripping,
energy-rated appliances, appropriately-sized furnaces, delivery
of fuel, and price differentials throughout Western Alaska. One
question remaining is whether AEA has the staff, resources, and
structure needed to administer the "tallest order in all of
Alaska." Co-Chair Edgmon concluded by saying that fiscal
constraints brought by lower oil prices must be observed as
well.
4:41:01 PM
CO-CHAIR MILLETT thanked Mr. Haagenson for his testimony. She
offered that the committee has made a commitment [to develop]
the framework of an energy plan with the help of state agencies,
the public, and business. She reminded the committee of the
public's high expectations for the AEA, and stated that she was
not disappointed in the work product. Co-Chair Millett
announced that the committee will be meeting in Kotzebue, Nome,
Bethel, and Dillingham in order to see first-hand the impacts of
the high cost of energy on communities and to seek solutions.
ADJOURNMENT
There being no further business before the committee, the House
Special Committee on Energy meeting was adjourned at 4:43 p.m.
| Document Name | Date/Time | Subjects |
|---|---|---|
| AEA project list 2.pdf.PDF |
HENE 1/27/2009 3:00:00 PM |
|
| AEA Letter.pdf.PDF |
HENE 1/27/2009 3:00:00 PM |
|
| HB0152Z.pdf |
HENE 1/27/2009 3:00:00 PM |
|
| AEA project list.pdf |
HENE 1/27/2009 3:00:00 PM |