1-27-12

Energy Digital:  The return to the gulf - But according to Interior Secretary Ken Salazar (NGP Photo), the new five-year program will make available for development more than three-quarters of undiscovered oil and gas resources estimated on the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS), including frontier areas such as the Arctic. In addition to the Gulf, offshore drilling in Alaska will recommence under the supervision of the Department of Interior and the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation, and Enforcement (BOEMRE). 
 
Fairbanks Daily News Miner: by FDNMstaff Lawmakers share alternative vision for oil tax reform - At the start of the first full week of the 2012 legislative session, Democratic lawmakers are outlining what they see as meaningful tax reform on oil producers, an issue that will be a key focus of this year’s session.
 
Digital journal:  Nancy Houser  China and Canada meet for Keystone XL pipeline partnership - Canada's Prime Minister Stephen Harper is preparing for a return visit to China, to meet with China's ambassador to Canada, Zhang Junsai, in two weeks. On the table will be Alberta's vast oil reserves and Canada's Keystone XL pipeline, both vital to China's growth and booming economy.
 
KTUU:  Jason Lamb  New In-State Natural Gas Pipeline Legislation Introduced in Juneau House - Speaker Mike Chenault (R-Nikiski) and Rep. Mike Hawker (R-Anchorage) have introduced the legislation that would, in part, turn three current legislative bills into one, in an effort to address Alaskans' energy needs.
 
Herald–Tribune:  Matthew Daily  State: 'Serious' questions on GOP pipeline bill - A Republican bill that would strip President Barack Obama of his authority to decide on a Canada-to-Texas oil pipeline raises "serious" legal questions, the State Department said Wednesday in objecting to the bill.  (Comment:  This means that this plan is real and the House may very well proceed with legislation forcing the Obama administration to approve Keystone XL. - AG)