U.S. Vice President Mike Pence meets with Alaska Gasline Development Corporation

By Jason Owen

Alaska Gasline Development Corporation President Keith Meyer Discusses the Alaska LNG Project with US Vice President Mike Pence. (PRNewsfoto/Alaska Gasline Development Corp)

ANCHORAGE, Ala., April 16, 2017 /PRNewswire/ — U.S. Vice President Mike Pence met Saturday, April 15 with Alaska Governor Bill Walker and Alaska Gasline Development Corporation (AGDC) President Keith Meyer. The vice president made a stop in Alaska as part of his trip to Asia.

“We had an excellent briefing and discussion with Vice President Pence about the Alaska LNG project,” said Meyer. The project will be the United States’ largest energy export project and will help fortify the nation’s ability to export LNG to the Asia-Pacific region.

The Alaska LNG project is expected to create 9,000 to 12,000 jobs for design and construction, with approximately 700 to 1,000 jobs for long-term operations. Almost every labor craft will be required, including: boilermakers, carpenters, insulators, ironworkers, laborers, electricians, instrument technicians, operating engineers, pipe fitters, welders, and more. The project will monetize America’s largest concentration of proven, conventional, but stranded, natural gas supply. It will provide low-cost, clean energy for Alaskans as well as LNG exports to the Asia-Pacific region for generations.

“Our meeting was a perfect precursor to the vice president’s trip to Asia,” said Meyer. Over the coming days, Vice President Pence will meet with leaders in South Korea as well as Japan — two primary markets for Alaska LNG. Trade partnerships will be a primary discussion topic.

Vice President Pence is the latest in a string of recent high-profile government officials to express interest in the Alaska LNG project. Last week, on April 7, Chinese President Xi Jinping, returning to Beijing after meeting with President Donald Trump, visited Anchorage where he met with Walker and Meyer. A significant point of discussion between the three leaders was the Alaska LNG project and how Alaska and China are well positioned for a long-term LNG trading relationship.

The Alaska Gasline Development Corporation (AGDC) is an independent, public corporation of the State of Alaska. Advancing the development and construction of a North Slope natural gas pipeline and LNG export terminal is its top priority. AGDC is charged with securing a long-term energy supply for Alaskans. Visit www.agdc.us for up to date information.