US: September 15, 2008


Alaska governor and Republican vice presidential contender Sarah Palin has clashed with big oil but she is also a staunch advocate of expanded drilling.


Following are some facts and figures about Alaska, Palin and oil.

- About 85 percent of Alaska's revenue comes from the oil. This is distributed to Alaska's roughly 670,00 residents in a range of forms including direct dividends from investment earnings on an oil wealth trust fund.

- Alaska is the second-ranked oil-producing state after Texas, according to the US Energy Information Administration.

- Nearly all of Alaska's oil production takes place on the North Slope. Prudhoe Bay on Alaska's North Slope is the highest yielding oil field in the United States, typically producing approximately 400,000 barrels per day.

- Palin pushed through a tax increase on oil and gas producers last year, doubling Alaska's energy revenues to more than US$10 billion. Oil companies BP and ConocoPhillips blasted the tax hike, citing it as a reason they postponed new projects.

- Palin signed a bill giving the state authority to award TransCanada Corp a license to build a long-delayed gas pipeline from the state's North Slope.

The pipeline had been on the drawing board for decades, stalled because of a hefty price tag now put at US$26 billion and regulatory hurdles.

- Palin is a vocal supporter of drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR).

Sources: Reuters, Energy Information Administration (Compiled by Ed Stoddard in Anchorage)


REUTERS NEWS SERVICE