A recent letter from the Alaska Village Electric Cooperative startled residents in the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta, saying customers had to repair their electric equipment by August or have their power cut off.

Alaska’s oil industry has specially designed its operations for freezing conditions. But as temperatures rise, companies are starting to pay a price for climate change — and some Alaska businesses are making money off of it.

In a departure from the meetings in Fairbanks and Anchorage, the primary focus of the meeting in Utqiaġvik was the details that should be considered as development moves forward, rather than whether or not it should happen.

At the meeting, officials said the Trump administration must move forward with oil lease sales in ANWR. About 100 protesters gathered outside.

Arctic Slope Regional Corporation and Kaktovik Inupiat Corporation have submitted a 3-D seismic exploration plan for the Coastal Plain, or the 1002 area.

Gov. Walker and the delegation met with Sinopec, the state-owned oil and gas company that could be a partner for the gasline. But the company’s president said there was a lot more work to be done on the project than originally imagined.

Welbourn and a few others from Trident joined Alaska Gov. Bill Walker’s 10-day trade mission to China. The whole idea was to deepen trade ties between the two countries and Trident is on board with that mission.

“We think we’ve got some great challenges right now for them and we hope they’ll pick some up,” said Larry Hinzman, Vice Chancellor for Research at the University of Alaska Fairbanks. 

The U.S. Forest Service removed some of the more sensitive watershed areas included in the original Kuiu Island sale, which received zero bids back in 2016.

The short meetings were a chance for Alaska businesses to introduce themselves directly to what they hope will be a giant market of new customers.