News from Cook Inlet, Alaska
Federal regulators renewed HEX Operating's permit to incidentally harass marine mammals during natural gas work in Cook Inlet through September 2027.

Governor Mike Dunleavy urged the legislature to pass a payment-in-lieu-of-taxes bill within three weeks, calling it essential to financing what he described as the largest project in Alaska history, an LNG pipeline from the North Slope.

Alaska LNG secured private financing to build 800-mile pipeline from North Slope to Cook Inlet, targeting 2027 construction start and 2029 gas delivery. • Needs tax stabilization law and utility regulator approval to proceed. • Export facility would sell 20 million tonnes of LNG yearly, mostly to Asia. • Project addresses Cook Inlet gas shortage and aims to lower Alaska energy costs.

Federal regulators claim exclusive authority over Alaska's proposed North Slope gas pipeline, blocking state oversight of ratepayer costs. • The project's split into in-state and export phases may give Alaska regulators a limited role if federal jurisdiction is revisited. • Lead developer Glenfarne is targeting a final investment decision this year and first gas by 2029.

NOAA Fisheries is hiring an Alaska woman-owned business to photograph and identify Cook Inlet beluga whales. Bids are due June 26 for a two-year contract starting September 2026. • The Cook Inlet beluga population has dropped 75 percent since 1979 to about 331 whales and is the only endangered beluga stock in Alaska.

Alaska closed all king salmon sport fishing in the Susitna drainage and West Cook Inlet

ENSTAR is locking in a $16 price ceiling, but Sen. Bert Stedman argued the costs may have just moved upstream, to the tune of $3.3 billion over 30 years.

Cook Inlet natural gas production has dropped 60% since 2010 to 200 million cubic feet per day, leaving winter demand unmet and forcing utilities to plan for costly LNG imports starting in 2033.

Hilcorp and ENSTAR filed three applications to convert depleted Cook Inlet gas fields into storage facilities, a move the state says is critical as the inlet's aging reserves decline and supply reliability becomes a concern for Southcentral Alaska.
Hilcorp seeks gas storage lease at Beluga River in Cook Inlet to manage Southcentral's winter demand surge. • The site overlaps critical habitat for the endangered Cook Inlet beluga whale, population around 300. • Alaska Department of Natural Resources is taking public comment on the application.

HEX Operating filed June 3 to renew its Cook Inlet oil spill response plan covering potential discharges up to 82,500 barrels. • The renewal comes as HEX expands drilling with state-backed financing, raising stakes for Cook Inlet salmon habitat and subsistence fishing. • Public comment period runs through July 6, with hearing requests due by June 22.

The Senate Resources Committee conducted a confirmation hearing for John Crowther, the governor's nominee for Commissioner of the Department of Natural Resources.
Senate Republicans warn Cook Inlet gas decline will raise rural power costs through state subsidy program. • Caucus calls energy shortage an existential crisis and pushes Legislature to build gasline instead of importing liquefied gas. • Three priorities set for special session: cut energy costs, create jobs from pipeline, manage resources for public benefit.

Alaska Oil and Gas Association testified against multiple tax provisions in SB 280, warning that sections decoupling oil and gas lease expenditures and imposing new S-corp taxes could harm current operations and chill investment.

MEA and ENSTAR told lawmakers Southcentral electricity and heating bills will jump $21 to $31 monthly starting in 2029 when Cook Inlet gas contracts expire and utilities switch to costlier imported liquefied natural gas.

The Alaska Board of Fisheries voted 4-2 to significantly restrict the Cook Inlet drift gillnet fishery through new fishing windows, area closures, and a 2-mile shoreline buffer to protect struggling northern Cook Inlet coho salmon populations.

AIDEA released the first draw from a $50 million credit line to HEX Cook Inlet LLC in May to drill two offshore gas wells, part of a broader state push including a royalty rate cut to 3% and pending legislation to support Cook Inlet production.

Cook Inlet razor clam diggers must now get a permit before heading out this summer, and face a December 31 reporting deadline or lose eligibility next year, even if they never dug a clam.

Federal regulators renewed a permit letting HEX Operating produce natural gas in Cook Inlet while monitoring disturbance to beluga whales and other marine mammals that share the inlet.

NOAA decided Gulf of Alaska Chinook don't qualify for ESA listing — even as Chinook closures pile up across Alaska systems.

Cook Inlet boats are after sockeye, but the coho they catch by accident could shut the whole season — at a limit the feds set below their own scientists' advice.

Cook Inlet's salmon season opens June 22. The last two years so many reds came back they went uncaught — and the rule behind that is still on the books.

Cook Inlet gas production fell to 61 billion cubic feet in 2025, matching annual regional demand with no winter cushion. • Daily output of 200 million cubic feet falls short of peak winter demand of 320 million cubic feet per day. • Hilcorp has drilled 192 wells since 2012 and spent $1.5 billion just to hold production steady as individual wells decline 30 to 40 percent annually. • Utilities are developing LNG import terminals to fill the gap, targeting first imports in 2027 to 2029.
