Alaska has been working with major oil companies and Washington lawmakers to build a pipeline to the lower forty-eight states for years. But it appears an intra-state pipeline capable of moving 460 million cubic feet of natural gas a day may come first. Reuters reported on Tuesday that Governor Sarah Palin, a Republican, is teaming up with Enstar to build an in-state natural gas pipeline to send untapped reserves (35 trillion cubic feet) on Alaska’s North Slope at a cost of $26 billion to $31 billion. The fuel would be pumped to Alaska residents in major population centers. The pipeline would cover about 450 miles and “run from the Cook Inlet basin in southern Alaska north as far as Fairbanks, and later extend to the Brooks Range hills to bring gas from there south to Fairbanks, Anchorage and other Alaska markets.” Construction is slated for 2011 and the pipeline could be turned on in 2013.
