Economy & Business

State labor department holds Fairbanks job fair Thursday at Morris Thompson Center

Alaska Labor Department holds a job fair Thursday, Oct. 29, at Fairbanks' Morris Thompson Center, not its usual spot.

by Walter AlaskaNews2w ago1 min read

Company says Skagway's old Starlite Room isn't historic and asks to move it

A Skagway business says the old Starlite Room, built around 2000, isn't historic and wants it out of the historic district. The commission weighs in Monday.

by Walter AlaskaNews2w ago2 min read

Skagway planners weigh where to claim the borough's last 118 acres of state land

Skagway has 118 acres of state land left to claim. Planners will discuss Tuesday whether to take 55 highway acres held since 1997 or pick elsewhere.

by Walter AlaskaNews2w ago2 min read

Forest Service to replace 39-year-old Sitka oil boiler with electric heat and a heat pump

The Forest Service hired a Ketchikan firm for about $285,000 to swap a 39-year-old Sitka oil boiler for electric heat and a heat pump. Sitka runs on hydro.

by Melinda Communities.News2w ago2 min read

Fairbanks advisory committee to elect seven, with Ambler no-hunting corridor on agenda

Fairbanks' fish and game advisory committee elects seven members Nov. 11, then turns to the Ambler Road no-hunting corridor it already voted 13-0 against.

by Maggie AlaskaNews2w ago3 min read

Northwest Arctic Borough energy plan finds fuel use down 2.1%, short of 10% goal

The Northwest Arctic cut imported fuel use 2.1% from 2008 to 2024, missing a 10% goal. Stove oil costs $27.60 a gallon in Ambler, the borough's plan says.

by Walter AlaskaNews2w ago3 min readFrom Sep 14

Petro Marine wants a new Wrangell fuel dock, saying its floats nearly touch bottom

Petro Marine says its Wrangell fuel floats nearly touch bottom at low tide, which isn't great for fuel barges. It wants to tear them out and build new ones.

by Walter AlaskaNews2w ago2 min read

Ketchikan planners to rehear parking variance for KIC's planned shelter after notice error

Ketchikan planners will rehear KIC's request to build a four-story shelter with one parking space instead of 24, after some neighbors weren't mailed notice.

by Walter AlaskaNews2w ago2 min read

Santos will hold Pikka near 70,000 barrels a day for now, short of its 80,000 target

Pikka briefly hit an 80,000-barrel daily rate, then bad weather and a road crash intervened. Santos will hold near 70,000 so water injection can catch up.

by Walter AlaskaNews2w ago2 min readFrom Oct 21

Shareholders sign off on Northrim's purchase of Oregon bank, its first move outside Alaska

Shareholders of both banks signed off on Northrim buying an Oregon bank Oct. 20. Now four regulators get a say before Northrim plants its flag outside Alaska.

by Walter AlaskaNews2w ago2 min read

Follows: Northrim takes $8.8 million hit on one customer days before vote on Oregon bank deal

Sitka planners recommend banning data centers in every zone, not by permit

Sitka's planners want data centers banned in every zone, not allowed by permit. Most people who testified agreed. Now it's up to the Assembly.

by Walter AlaskaNews2w ago3 min read

Follows: Sitka Planning Commission takes testimony on requiring permits for data centers

Palmer Project companies ask the state to extend their exploration approval to 2033

Two companies want until 2033, not 2028, for the drilling and test pits the state approved at the Palmer copper prospect near Haines. Comments due Nov. 6.

by Walter AlaskaNews2w ago2 min read

Homer may ask the federal government to review its air service as boardings drop

Homer's mayor wants the city to ask the feds to review its air service. Boardings there have fallen by more than a third in two years. Valdez did the same in 2024.

by Walter AlaskaNews2w ago2 min read

State proposes a 25-year tidelands lease for Goldbelt's Douglas Island cruise port

The state wants to lease Goldbelt 152 acres of tidelands for its west Douglas cruise port, for 25 years, not the 55 it asked for. Crabbers may feel it.

by Walter AlaskaNews2w ago3 min read

Kenai nonprofit seeks permit to open a therapeutic daycare on Beaver Loop Road

A Kenai nonprofit wants to turn an empty former group home into a daycare for up to 20 kids, including kids with disabilities. The city takes it up Wednesday.

by Walter AlaskaNews2w ago2 min read

Ex-Polar LNG chief says Russia's Novatek supplied undisclosed startup funding

Polar LNG Russian financing

by Cale Green2w ago4 min read

Murkowski tells AFN fuel prices are wrong and ties them to the Iran war

Murkowski told AFN high fuel prices are wrong and blamed the Iran war. She said she's voted for six months to end it. The Senate record says closer to five.

by Walter AlaskaNews2w ago2 min read

Committee drops visitors bureau chief from Ketchikan's planned tourism board

A Ketchikan committee cut the visitors bureau chief from the city's planned tourism board, with a member saying the board may someday review the bureau's work.

by Walter AlaskaNews2w ago2 min read

State lets seismic survey near Beluga reach across the Castle Mountain Fault

The state let a Houston seismic company redraw its lines in the Susitna Flats refuge so one reaches across the Castle Mountain Fault. Nobody commented.

by Walter AlaskaNews2w ago2 min read

Follows: State takes comment on expanding Western Cook Inlet geophysical survey near Beluga

New book on Alaska's microgrids collects stories of the people behind them

A new book profiles Alaska's microgrids and the people behind them, including a woman who signed her letters for village power "Housewife, Stony River."

by Bill AlaskaNews2w ago2 min read

Rose, Holdmann say Southcentral gas imports look unavoidable and urge state policy

The founders of REAP and UAF's energy center say Southcentral probably can't avoid importing gas, and want a new governor to "knock heads" among utilities.

by Bill AlaskaNews2w ago2 min read

State proposes full leases for Alaska LNG pipeline route, replacing conditional leases

The state proposed Friday to give Alaska LNG full leases for its 807-mile pipeline route. Closed financing, final contracts and a tax deal are still pending.

by Walter AlaskaNews2w ago3 min read

Follows: Alaska LNG asks DNR to convert conditional pipeline leases to full leases

Alaska Supreme Court upholds borough's denial of Anchor Point gravel pit permit

The Alaska Supreme Court upheld the denial of an Anchor Point gravel pit after an eight-year fight, saying the owner's must-approve reading defies common sense.

by Bill AlaskaNews2w ago2 min read

USDA will back loans of up to $175 million for seafood plants in $5 billion program

USDA says seafood plants can apply for federally backed loans of up to $175 million starting Tuesday. Its own program page still says the money is pending.

by Melinda Communities.News3w ago2 min read

Solomon tribe helps buy Nome's utility a bucket truck with federal grid money

The Village of Solomon put $125,000 toward a bucket truck for Nome's utility. It's the first tribe in its Bering Strait consortium to start spending its share.

by Walter AlaskaNews2w ago2 min read

Alaska students can propose a glacier name for the Tustumena's replacement ferry

Alaska students can pitch a name for the Tustumena's replacement ferry, as long as it's a glacier, and the Legislature gets the final say. Essays due Nov. 23.

by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago2 min read

Proposal deadlines have passed on two Air Force plans to lease Eielson land

Bids were due this summer on Air Force plans to lease Eielson land for AI data centers and for housing. Fairbanks' mayor flagged it in July. No winner yet.

by Melinda Communities.News3w ago2 min read

Geist Road clinic seeks permit to expand and approval for a lot it already built

After its rezone deadlocked planners, a Geist Road orthopedic clinic seeks a permit to expand. Its new parking lot got built before it got permitted.

by Maggie AlaskaNews3w ago2 min read

NOAA finalizes call for bids to run its Fairbanks satellite station

NOAA made its call for a company to run its Fairbanks satellite station official. What changed from last week's draft? Mostly the word "draft."

by Melinda Communities.News3w ago2 min read

UAF honors Cordova Electric CEO Clay Koplin for microgrid work in Cordova

UAF honored Cordova Electric CEO Clay Koplin for microgrid work in a town with no outside power line, a few months before he takes over Matanuska Electric.

by Melinda Communities.News3w ago1 min read

State moves to expand lease for Alyeschem's North Slope methanol and diesel plant

The state moved Friday to give Alyeschem's North Slope methanol and diesel plant a bit more elbow room, adding 11.7 acres to its lease and dropping 9.22.

by Maggie AlaskaNews3w ago2 min read

Cape Blossom Road closes for second stage of project to cut Kotzebue freight costs

The road south of Kotzebue toward Cape Blossom is closed for the second stage of construction on a project meant to cut freight costs for the region.

by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago1 min read

Alaska Marine Lines raises its Western and Arctic barge fuel surcharge to 16.5%

Alaska Marine Lines raised its fuel surcharge on barge freight to Western and Arctic Alaska to 16.5%, more than double what it charged at the end of 2024.

by Walter AlaskaNews2w ago2 min readFrom Oct 9

Port MacKenzie would freeze 2027 dock rates and add fees for guards and late ships

Port MacKenzie would hold dock rates flat next year and add fees for armed guards and late ships. A commissioner says it has "a problem with no traffic."

by Walter AlaskaNews2w ago2 min readFrom Oct 19

Corps proposes raising and rebuilding Ketchikan's Bar Harbor breakwaters

Army Corps plans to raise and rebuild Ketchikan's deteriorating Bar Harbor breakwaters, protecting moorage for 520 fishing boats. Public comments on the draft plan are due Nov. 21.

by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago2 min read

Seward asks residents how to ease congestion between harbor, cruise dock and downtown

Seward wants ideas on easing navigation and congestion between its harbor, cruise dock and downtown, and is asking for them at an open house Tuesday.

by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago1 min read

Regulators approve Golden Valley's plan for rolling outages in the Interior

State regulators approved Golden Valley's rolling-outage plan, so if the Interior runs short of power, zones take turns in the dark for up to an hour.

by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago2 min read

Energy official says Alaska tribal projects draw about half of $125 million federal selection

The U.S. Energy Department picked 20 Alaska tribal projects for about half of a $125 million funding round, covering power plants from Noatak to Port Graham.

by Maggie AlaskaNews3w ago2 min read

Begich tells AFN Southcentral Foundation land transfer is law; Sullivan lists his bills

Begich told AFN the Southcentral Foundation land transfer was signed this week, and he and Sullivan walked delegates through their other laws and stalled bills.

by Maggie AlaskaNews3w ago2 min read

Homer port director recommends inflation increases for most 2027 dock and harbor rates

Homer's port director wants most dock fees to rise with inflation. He's also eyeing Anchorage, where a cargo surcharge nearly triples in January.

by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago2 min read