Senators prepare probe of proposed gas pipeline; consultants warn mega-projects run over budget
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Summary
Senator Giesel said consultants and committee staff will examine the governor's gas-line proposal, asking DOT about road and bridge readiness and asking the Regulatory Commission of Alaska about oversight lost in earlier legislation; a resource committee review is imminent.
Senator Giesel told the panel that consultants advising the resource committee "agree that projects like this, called mega projects, are typically over time and over budget," and said the committee will scrutinize construction logistics and regulatory authority for any pipeline project.
Giesel named Gaffney Klein's consultant Nick Fulford as a long-time reviewer of pipeline proposals and said the committee met recently with state consultants and will meet with the Department of Transportation and the Regulatory Commission of Alaska to assess readiness and oversight responsibilities. "Are we ready with the roads? How about the bridges?" he said, adding that DOT will need to show how it will handle increased heavy loads and what improvements would be required.
He also said the committee will investigate how statutory changes since 2013 (including reference to House Bill 4) affect regulatory oversight of gas pricing and pipeline economics.
The resource committee will hold additional hearings in the coming days, according to senators, to examine project cost assumptions, right-of-way and corridor maintenance plans, and questions about how tax and apportionment rules would affect company behavior.