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North Slope crude runs $15 above Alaska's spring forecast, budget group says
Alaska North Slope crude is averaging $90 a barrel, $15 above the spring forecast, potentially adding nearly $1 billion to state revenue this year if prices hold.
by Walter AlaskaNews11h ago2 min read
State lifts Kaktovik do-not-drink water order
Kaktovik residents can drink their tap water again. The state lifted its do-not-drink order Saturday after three weeks of antifreeze-chemical contamination.
by Maggie AlaskaNews1d ago2 min read
Much of the Beaufort Sea's ice melted out in August after a cold, late start
A cold, cloudy spring slowed the melt off Alaska's north coast. Then August opened a hole north of Utqiaġvik, and much of the Beaufort's ice was gone.
by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 2d ago2 min read
State denies Florida company's bid to expand oil unit on the Arctic refuge border
A Florida company wanted three more leases added to its oil unit on the Arctic refuge border. The state says the leases had expired and showed no oil or gas.
by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 4d ago1 min read
Utqiagvik's council can pause the sales tax five more years without a vote
Utqiagvik's council can pause the city sales tax five more years on its own. The marijuana tax increase, meanwhile, has to go to the voters.
by Walter AlaskaNews5d ago2 min read
Three virtual hearings this week will take comments on BLM's Arctic fast-track
Three virtual hearings begin Tuesday on a 60-day Arctic permitting rule that BLM says could roughly double development.
by Walter AlaskaNews1w ago2 min read
The Dalton closes completely Tuesday morning for culvert work
The Dalton Highway shuts down completely Tuesday morning for about five hours, and there is no detour around the only road to the North Slope.
by Walter AlaskaNews1w ago1 min read
Alaska's tribal college wins federal money for students and food knowledge
Alaska's only tribal college won $352,000 from the USDA to help students stay in school and to teach Iñupiaq food systems on the North Slope.
by Maggie AlaskaNews1w ago2 min read
Kaktovik's do-not-drink notice stays until sharper lab results arrive
Kaktovik's do-not-drink order is still in place. The North Tank starts refilling Friday, and new samples with finer detection limits are at the lab.
by Maggie AlaskaNews1w ago2 min read
ConocoPhillips' Disclosed Alaska Royalties Fell 58% in Two Years
ConocoPhillips paid $37.97 million in royalties on its federal Alaska leases last year, down 58 percent from 2023, partly on lower oil prices.
by Walter AlaskaNews1w ago2 min read
Ice risk on the Dalton Highway and Arctic Coast until noon
Freezing rain and snow could make roads slippery on the Beaufort Sea Coast and Arctic Plains through noon Wednesday, National Weather Service warns.
by Maggie AlaskaNews1w ago1 min read
State-backed Alyeschem plant reaches construction milestone
Alyeschem has finished driving foundation piles for its Prudhoe Bay chemical plant. Alaska's backing is a repayable loan, not a $70 million grant.
by Melinda Communities.News1w ago2 min read
A bill would guarantee vehicle access for the village inside Gates of the Arctic
A national park was drawn around Anaktuvuk Pass in 1980 without asking. A bill would guarantee the village the right to drive out and go hunting.
by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 1w ago2 min read
BLM Rule Would Cut NPR-A Pad Approvals to 60 Days, Limit Hunting
The BLM's own analysis found a proposed drilling rule would significantly restrict subsistence hunting for three North Slope villages. Hearings begin Monday.
by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 2w ago3 min read
Kaktovik flushes millions of gallons of glycol-tainted water after plant mistake
Kaktovik is flushing glycol-tainted water after a plant error. The borough calls the level low-risk for adults; it topped every federal guideline.
by Walter AlaskaNews2w ago2 min read
ConocoPhillips seeks looser Willow drilling rules; hearing window open
ConocoPhillips wants Alaska to ease Willow's drilling and reporting rules. The public has until Sept. 22 to force a hearing before the state signs off.
by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 2w ago2 min read
A federal rule would let NPR-A drilling spread pad by pad, skipping environmental study
A federal rule would let oil drilling spread across NPR-A pad by pad — each new site fast-tracking the next and skipping the environmental study now required.
by Maggie AlaskaNews2w ago2 min read
North Slope oil is running below the state's forecast so far, and the price is running above it
Alaska's oil is flowing below the state's revenue forecast while the price runs above it. The two effects roughly offset, and the year is only ten weeks old.
by Walter AlaskaNews2w ago2 min read
NOAA is paying $735,000 for more cleanup at a site Alaska will not close
NOAA is paying $735,000 for another year of cleanup at a former weather office site, where the state has refused to close out one building yet.
by Melinda Communities.News2w ago1 min read
Minnesota hunter cited for wanton waste of a caribou near Sagwon
Minnesota hunter cited for leaving edible meat unsalvaged on a bull caribou near Sagwon and removing antlers before finishing the salvage.
by Maggie AlaskaNewsadded 2w ago1 min read
The pipeline right-of-way comment window got another week
The public has until Sept. 17 to comment on whether the trans-Alaska pipeline keeps its federal right-of-way for 30 more years, after the Bureau of Land Management extended the deadline by a week.
by Maggie AlaskaNewsadded 2w ago1 min read
Hilcorp wants a North Slope gravel mine with no wetland payback
Hilcorp wants to mine gravel across about 95 acres of North Slope tundra near Deadhorse with no wetland compensation, arguing Arctic wetlands can't be replaced.
by Maggie AlaskaNews3w ago2 min read
Kaktovik under a do-not-drink notice after ethylene glycol found
Kaktovik residents can't drink the village tap water after testing found ethylene glycol, the toxic compound in antifreeze, in the system. Boiling won't help.
by Maggie AlaskaNews3w ago2 min read
BLM rule would let NPR-A operators waive subsistence conditions without public notice
A new BLM rule lets oil and gas operators in Alaska's National Petroleum Reserve waive mitigation conditions, including four protections for subsistence hunting, without public notice.
by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago3 min read
Hilcorp says the North Slope is running short of gravel and wants a new mine
Hilcorp is seeking state approval for a 64-acre gravel mine seven miles northwest of Deadhorse, with public comment due Sept. 28, as the company's existing North Slope gravel sources run low.
by Maggie AlaskaNewsadded 3w ago2 min read
ConocoPhillips drilled in the NPR-A this winter and has not said what it found
ConocoPhillips drilled multiple wells in the NPR-A this winter and added $104 million to costs it has not resolved. It has not said what it found.
by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 3w ago2 min read
Doyon says the Rig 26 tundra cleanup is in its final phase
Doyon says cleanup where its Rig 26 toppled near Nuiqsut has reached its final phase, though the state hasn't independently confirmed the company's account.
by Maggie AlaskaNewsadded 3w ago2 min read
State opens four-permit muskox hunt in Unit 26B as herd falls to 220
Alaska will issue four bull muskox permits in Unit 26B starting Oct. 1, even though the herd has crashed to 220 animals, well below the 300-animal management target.
by Bill AlaskaNews3w ago2 min read
A proposed rule would cut years of NPR-A oil review down to 60 days
Building an oil site in the NPR-A takes years of review. A proposed rule makes it 60 days for anything within 25 miles of existing infrastructure.
by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago4 min read
Former mayor Harry Brower Jr. files to run against Patkotak for North Slope Borough mayor
Harry Brower Jr. ran the North Slope Borough for seven years and wants it back. He and the incumbent are both from Utqiagvik, in a borough of eight villages.
by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 3w ago1 min read
Kaktovik leaders back 1002 Area development and press AIDEA to weigh local knowledge
Kaktovik leaders told AIDEA board members that oil and gas decisions in the Arctic refuge's 1002 Area must include local residents and traditional knowledge, not just outside voices.
by Bill AlaskaNewsadded 3w ago2 min read
He fought the fire that destroyed his Kaktovik school. Now he's helping to rebuild it.
Kaktovik crane operator Roy Robert Fischer-Akootchook, who fought the 2020 school fire, now operates equipment on its rebuild, with the new gym open since December 2025.
by Maggie AlaskaNews3w ago2 min read
North Slope Borough Assembly raises lot density to four homes in zoning code rewrite
North Slope Borough Assembly voted 9-0 to allow four homes per lot instead of two, aiming to address a shortage of 637 housing units across the region.
by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago2 min read
A fight over whether North Slope oil money stays local or goes to the whole state
Alaska's bigger cut of North Slope oil revenue has set off a fight over whether it stays with the communities nearest the drilling or goes to the whole state.
by Walter AlaskaNews4w ago7 min read
Alaska Supreme Court upholds rule requiring rent on expired oil leases during appeals
The Alaska Supreme Court upheld a rule requiring oil companies to keep paying rent on expired leases while appealing, ending five North Slope leases.
by Alaska News1mo ago2 min read
Hilcorp wants to fill 95 acres of Arctic wetlands for a gravel mine — comment by Sept. 4
Hilcorp wants to fill about 95 acres of Arctic tundra wetlands near Prudhoe Bay for a gravel mine, with no offset for the loss. Comment is open until Sept. 4.
by Bill AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read
Wright and Dunleavy insist the Alaska LNG project is alive
At an Anchorage conference, the U.S. energy secretary and Gov. Dunleavy insisted the stalled Alaska LNG project is alive, pointing at different obstacles.
by Bill AlaskaNews1mo ago3 min read
Utqiagvik council weighs finance and executive director appointments
The Utqiagvik City Council will vote Thursday on new appointments for two top administrative offices, a finance director and an executive director, with no explanation given in the agenda for the changes.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read
Utqiaġvik hears a marijuana tax rise from 8% to 10% tonight, and voters decide Oct. 6
Utqiaġvik City Council hears a proposal tonight to raise the marijuana sales tax from 8% to 10%, with voters deciding Oct. 6.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read
Dalton Highway repairs begin Wednesday, narrowing it to one lane
Dalton Highway repairs at Milepost 315 start Wednesday with 24-hour flagging and up to 20-minute delays, narrowing the North Slope's main supply route to one lane.
by Maggie AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read
