Energy Updates: August 2026
With autumn around the bend, energy is on our minds. This month we’ve got an important GVEA update and the good news that AK LNG tax subsidies finally fell flat.
Take action: GVEA shouldn’t rush a huge new investment in fossil fuels
At the August 25th meeting, the GVEA Board may vote on purchasing an LM6000 gas turbine with an all-in cost around $200 million.
This is concerning, given the potential downsides to such an investment. Considerations should include the debt GVEA would take on, what this would mean for member energy rates, and how air quality would be impacted around the facility. This approach to adding power to our grid would also lock the Interior into more long-term dependence on fossil fuels which are subject to huge price swings based on global events like the Iran war.
Before making such an expensive investment, the Board should seek more information about all the alternatives, including wind, solar, battery storage, demand-response plans, and mitigation by the mining industry and the military.
Take action at the GVEA board meeting on Tuesday, August 25.
At long last, AK LNG legislation runs out of gas
After almost five months of legislative committee hearings, three special sessions, contentious floor votes, and a megaproject-sized political pressure campaign, Governor Dunleavy’s attempt to subsidize the Alaska LNG project has finally stalled out.
Proposed property tax cuts for the project failed to pass at the end of the second special session in July after legislators were asked to vote on a compromise bill without the chance to offer amendments.
The Senate Majority voted to pass the bill, which included a measure to close the longstanding tax loophole for privately owned oil and gas companies like Hilcorp. On the House side it was actually the gasline’s strongest proponents who stood in the bill’s way because of that tax measure — the Governor, and reportedly Hilcorp, also voiced opposition to closing the tax loophole.
Even before the House voted the legislation down, Governor Dunleavy said he would veto the bill, and called a third special session. But it took the governor’s office two weeks to introduce a new version, which met with immediate skepticism from both legislators and industry.
After recent comments by the governor suggesting the overall cost of the project could be $65 to 70 billion — $10 to 15 billion higher than Glenfarne’s upper estimate — came to light, legislators seemed to finally run out of patience. Senate President Gary Stevens (R-Kodiak) gave this blunt assessment; “We are being asked to commit Alaskans to a deal we cannot fully see.”
We want to say a big thank you to all of you who have taken the time to call and write your legislators these past months, sharing that exact concern. The Alaska LNG project will not disappear with the failure of this push for tax subsidies, but every question Glenfarne has to answer publicly makes it increasingly clear they are trying to sell on Alaska empty promises.
Making some fun summer connections
To kick off August, the FCAC team was on the Kenai Peninsula to connect with people from around the state (and country) at Salmonfest. The annual event in Ninilchik is a three-day folk music festival with a focus on protecting Alaska’s salmon and diverse ecosystems across the state under threat from extractive industries.
Along with our friends at Cook Inletkeeper, and a few volunteers (thank you!), we talked with hundreds of people about the false energy promises, economic pitfalls, and environmental harms of the Alaska LNG project. We encountered a fun mix of familiarity with the issue - with people asking great questions about the current scope of the project - to people ready to dive deep into the weeds of energy policy. It was great to learn more about people’s different energy concerns, and we’re excited to build on those conversations!
It was also the debut of some awesome new artwork from Fairbanks artist Emily Hikes that you can now get on a hoodie or a t-shirt!
Back in Fairbanks, you might have seen us at the Tanana Valley State Fair or the Angry, Young, and Poor festival in Ester. It was fun engaging our local community in conversations about climate change and real energy solutions. It’s clear that people are skeptical about the proposed AK LNG pipeline project and Outside oil and gas companies' plans for the state.
Many community members also raised questions about the viability of closing the energy gap using renewable energy sources. Although renewables are already working and lowering energy bills across Alaska, not everyone has first-hand experience with this, so these conversations underscored the importance of the work we're doing to highlight these stories. More on that soon!
Help us spread the word that “Renewables Work, Billionaires Don’t!” Stop by our table this Sunday, August 30th, at the Fairbanks Fungi Festival and grab some fun new stickers and art, including our shirts and hoodies with Emily's art, as well as sticker designs from AK artists Arleigh Hitchcock of Them Processed Goods, and Cook Inletkeeper's Ben Boettger.
More ways to get involved:
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