Relief from increasing utility bills may be coming this way for many Alaskans.

With a high probability of success, Enstar is aggressively pursuing delivery of natural gas to an expanded in-state customer base, through Fairbanks and along the Parks Highway to existing Cook Inlet gas infrastructure. As early as 2014, North Slope natural gas may be available in Southcentral Alaska. When complete, whether you live in Willow or Fairbanks, this project would deliver clean, affordable natural gas to generate electricity and replace nearly cost-prohibitive fuel oil. We Alaskans deserve to be treated as the preferred customers for Alaska’s natural gas and this exciting endeavor reflects that.

The envisioned $3.4 billion, 24-inch underground pipeline running south from the North Slope foothills is called the “Bullet Line.”  It is expected that such a line can be built and deliver first gas in less than half the time of a Canada route and at a small fraction of the cost. Facing a critical supply shortage in Cook Inlet in the next five years, Enstar and Foothills field operator, Anadarko Petroleum Corp., and other partners are proposing to fill the breach by delivering 0.5 BCF/day or more of high-value gas. This field contains dry gas, which enables production of the resource without building a costly gas treatment plant (GTP). No GTP, coupled with the recently enacted lower tax rate on gas produced for in-state use, bodes well for customers facing skyrocketing heating and electricity generation costs. The expandable 24-inch line is sufficient to support an industrial load as well. This allows for economies of scale to reduce the high cost of transportation usually associated with small pipelines. Enstar proposes storing gas in exhausted or inactive fields in the Cook Inlet region to make sure peak winter demands can be met. This, too, positively affects prices, somewhat leveling the supply volatility associated with the existing contracts and underground reservoirs.

The project would create supply certainty for Enstar and the state’s Railbelt residents and hopefully, for industrial users. Enstar reports that conversations with Agrium are ongoing. Company executives suggest that Agrium’s decommissioning and job-loss woes could be reversed with the certainty of this new gas. In addition to Agrium, recognize there are positive labor and economic impacts to be had from other potential commercial customers like LNG facilities (which may require federal licensing) or a petrochemical complex processing high value by-products.

The driving force of this project is the bleak outlook for Cook Inlet gas deliverability and future curtailment. Time is running out with current Cook Inlet gas producers agreeing to only short-term (five-year) supply contracts. Serious planning is underway. A serious tens of millions of dollars are being spent by an independent explorer to get at an estimated 20 trillion cubic feet of gas and a utility company is spending a serious $5 million to $7 million on the initial engineering, permitting and regulatory work.

“We have no [other] choice,” said Gene Dubay, senior vice president and chief operating officer of Enstar’s parent company, Continental Energy Systems, during our committee hearing.

It is important for Alaskans to be aware of and support this bold move on the part of industry. Enstar did not come to Juneau looking for a handout; it came with solutions. I urge Alaskans to support this concept. A bullet line is essential in the near term to meet the future energy needs of Alaskans from Fairbanks to Homer. It is about getting affordable gas and electricity to the preferred customers — Alaskans.

State Sen. Charlie Huggins is a Wasilla Republican and represents Senate District H.