Northwest Arctic energy projects put on hold

Infrastructure projects across the country are in limbo after the Trump administration placed a sweeping 90-day hold on federal grant and loan programs. For the Northwest Arctic, this jeopardizes millions of dollars for previously funded energy projects and could further delay them for at least a year.

‘‘We have, for several years, been working together to develop a regional energy plan,” said Kotzebue Electric Association’s CEO and General Manager Tom Atkinson. ‘‘These grants are all part of building projects that will help us with energy independence and economic development. So it’s a much larger picture.”

Over the last year the Northwest Arctic received millions in federal funding for renewable energy and projects to strengthen its electric grid. In February, the Northwest Arctic Borough announced a $54.8 million federal grant from the Department of Energy, with an additional several million dollar match from NANA Regional Corp., to bring solar arrays, heat pumps, batteries and transmission lines to the region. KEA received over $20 million for three separate projects for upgrades to its diesel plant, infrastructure and additional storage batteries. The Native Village of Kotzebue with Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium received a $20 million dollar grant for two, 1-megawatt wind turbines, and a separate grant for a 700 kilowatt solar array.

After President Donald Trump’s funding freeze, the money and projects are now on hold.

“That’s the struggle in all this. We can’t spend money because we don’t have any assurance that it will be reimbursed by the grants that have already been awarded to us,” Atkinson said.

One example is a 4-megawatt storage battery that took three years for the electric utility and U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowksi to get federal funding for. Now the project may be delayed for another year because of the region's short shipping season. “We were just about ready to make a battery selection and get it sent up on the barge for construction this summer when this announcement came out,” said Atkinson. “This means that we will mostlikely miss the window to have this battery shipped up on the barge” Native Village of Kotzebue Energy Manager Chad Nordlum said one of the frustrating aspects of the 90-day delay is that it will likely cost rural Alaska more than projects on the road system.

“It would take an act of Congress for Mr. Trump to revoke those kind of funds,” said Ingemar Mathiasson, energy manager for the Northwest Arctic Borough. Mathiasson said it’s not likely the funding will be entirely lost, but the Trump administration could extend the hold beyond 90 days.

“‘So it endangers all our projects for 2025,” said Mathiasson.

Several regional and statewide energy leaders, including Atkinson, plan to appeal to Alaska’s U.S. senators to lift the freeze.

“‘Some may say renewable energy does not align with the current administration’s goals,” Atkinson said. “I would argue that it does, especially in our area.”

Atkinson said the region's renewable energy keeps more money in the local economy, and lessens the dependence on imported diesel. One of the frozen projects would repair electric infrastructure to Kotzebue’s Coast Guard base, which supports national security. While he agrees with the Trump administration’s assessment that there is a national energy emergency, Atkinson sees renewable energy as the solution.

Like Atkinson, borough assembly member and KEA board member Reid Magdanz says rural, renewable energy shouldn’t be a partisan issue.

“It’s not a political thing to us,” said Magdanz. “It’s directly affecting what we can get done in our communities. And it's pretty unfortunate.”

Magdanz said the possibility of future fuel tariffs could add more instability to the region’s energy prices over the next year