Spokesmen for BP, ExxonMobil and ConocoPhillips, which are jointly planning a pipeline, say negotiating a "clear and durable fiscal contract" with the state is the next step. Negotiations now are in progress.

The plan received a boost in a 2005 appropriations bill that President Bush signed into law on Oct. 13. That measure contains several provisions aimed at moving the project along, including a federal guarantee for up to $18 billion and expedited environmental and judicial reviews.

"After working for more than 20 years to make this...project a reality, we have finally taken steps to make the Alaska natural gas pipeline happen," says Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Ted Stevens (R-Alaska), a prime mover behind attaching the pipeline provisions to the spending bill. The provisions were part of the omnibus energy bill that became mired in the Senate last year (see p. 9).

Bill Wicker, a spokesman for Senate energy committee Democrats, says, "It’s interesting that the one provision that industry said they needed the most was not included in the package"–a price floor for natural gas. But it includes some provisions ExxonMobil didn’t want, such as loan guarantees and accelerated depreciation. "We felt the project should be able to stand on its own economically, without artificial support," says Bob Davis, ExxonMobil spokesman.

Brian Moore, legislative director for the Alaska Wilderness League, says, "We’re not opposed to it as long as this project follows the existing [Alaska oil] pipeline corridor" and adheres to National Environmental Policy Act requirements.