Office of the Federal Coordinator Releases First Phase Implementation Plan for The Alaska Pipeline Project

Washington, D.C. – The Office of the Federal Coordinator for Alaska Natural Gas Transportation Projects today released its First-Phase Consolidated Implementation Plan for the Alaska Pipeline Project, a partnership joint effort of TransCanada and ExxonMobil.

The report summarizes the gas line developer’s activities to date, identifies eight "attention items" discussed with federal agencies during development of the implementation plan, reviews the field work required for permitting the pipeline, and summarizes the roles of federal agencies involved in the project. The implementation plan is part of the federal coordinator’s congressional mandate to oversee the multiple permits required for the multibillion-dollar project.

The Office of the Federal Coordinator prepared a similar plan last year for the Denali – The Alaska Gas Pipeline, a joint venture between ConocoPhillips and BP. The Denali and Alaska Pipeline Project teams are each working on plans to build a pipeline to carry North Slope natural gas to markets in the Lower 48.

The Office of the Federal Coordinator is responsible for consolidating agency implementation plans after a project sponsor has started its application process with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. The office will compile and update the implementation plans in phases during the regulatory and permitting process and construction.

"The Alaska natural gas pipeline project continues to take steps forward. The Alaska Pipeline Project has started its open season and is working with federal agencies to acquire permits to conduct field work this summer, while Denali is preparing to begin its open season in early July," said Larry Persily, federal coordinator for the Alaska Natural Gas Transportation Projects office.

"In an effort to provide clear and easily accessible information for the public, the Office of Federal Coordinator developed this first-phase plan to provide an overview of the federal agencies, their roles in this project, and the issues they recognize will need to be addressed," Persily said. "We collaborated with the federal agencies and the Alaska Pipeline Project to ensure this is a comprehensive and accurate document."

The First Phase Consolidated Implementation Plan – The Alaska Pipeline Project can be found on the OFC website, http://www.arcticgas.gov.

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Attachments: 

pr-app-first-phase-implementation-plan.pdf