Chugach-ML&P decision in March
The Regulatory Commission of Alaska is now likely to decide in March on Chugach Electric’s bid to acquire Anchorage’s city-owned Municipal Light and Power. The commission is likely to accept a revised plan after a break in proceedings to allow negotiations. At issue is a proposed premium that Chugach would pay the municipality. The revised plan would have $15 million of the premium go to fund a long-sought addiction treatment center.

$50 million Mat-Su LNG project
Construction of a $50 million expansion at the small Titan natural gas liquefaction plant near Port MacKenzie could be underway next year. Air Liquide, a major gas technology company, has been selected for the construction.

The expansion would allow more liquefied gas to be made at the Mat-Su plant for shipment by truck to IGU’s customers in Fairbanks. The utility is also close to completing a new 5.25 million-gallon LNG storage tank in Fairbanks that would support IGU’s expanded gas distribution system in the Interior city. IGU also has construction underway of a smaller LNG storage plant at North Pole, east of Fairbanks, to serve new customers there.

Fairbanks heat conversion grants
The Fairbanks North Star Borough received a new $5 million U.S. Environmental Protection Agency grant to finance conversions of wood stoves in the borough, which is badly affected by winter air pollution caused from burning wood. To date, borough has financed $10 million in wood stove conversions, taking 2,708 older wood-burning units out of service