At a moment when global energy markets are anything but predictable, it’s increasingly clear that Alaska’s role in America’s energy future has never been more important.
Alaska plays a role in the national interest that far exceeds its status as a strategic asset and producing region. The resources on the North Slope, the infrastructure that moves those barrels through the Trans-Alaska Pipeline System, and the workforce that supports it all are directly tied to U.S. energy security.
But energy production in Alaska doesn’t stand alone. It is part of a broader economic system that has to function well for investment, development, and long-term production to continue. That’s where Alaska Native corporations come in.
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Created under the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act, ANCs are a uniquely Alaskan model of economic development. They are private, for-profit companies that generate economic opportunity and financial return for Alaska Native shareholders while reinvesting in communities across the state.
Today, ANCs are deeply integrated into Alaska’s economy, and increasingly into the national economy, through participation in the SBA 8(a) Business Development Program. That program allows ANCs to compete for and perform federal contracts in areas such as logistics, engineering, infrastructure support, and cybersecurity. The result is business growth and capital flowing back into Alaska.
That matters more than many in Washington may realize. ANCs are job creators and economic importers. They bring outside revenue into Alaska and reinvest it in scholarships, healthcare, small businesses, and essential services in both rural and urban communities. In many parts of the state, they are foundational to the local economy.
Proposals to restrict or fundamentally alter ANC participation in the 8(a) program risk undermining that model. When you weaken a foundational part of Alaska’s economy, the effects won’t stay isolated.
Energy development, particularly in Alaska, is long-cycle, capital-intensive, and highly sensitive to investment conditions. Companies making billion-dollar decisions look at the broader operating environment, including workforce stability, community strength, infrastructure, and economic continuity.
If one part of that system is destabilized, it introduces risk across the board. As a result, the consequences of instability become less theoretical and quickly create real implications for projects driving Alaska’s next generation of production.
Projects like Pikka Phase 1 are nearing first oil, and Willow is advancing toward development. Recent leasing activity in the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska demonstrated renewed investor interest in the region. These transformative projects are the result of a successful system characterized by stable policy, aligned stakeholders, and a broad economic base that supports development. ANCs are a vital part of this system.
This is why the conversation around the 8(a) program should not be viewed narrowly as a federal contracting issue. It is an economic and strategic issue with direct ties to domestic energy production, national security, and the long-term viability of one of the United States’s most important resource basins.
Alaska has always required a different lens. It is remote, lacks basic infrastructure, and operates on long timelines. But it also offers outsize benefits to the state and to the country when the policy framework is right.
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If we want more American energy, we need a strong Alaska. But a strong Alaska needs policies that reinforce the economic institutions that make development possible. That includes ANCs and the tools that allow them to compete, grow, and reinvest profits back into the state.
Policymakers in Washington should recognize what works for Alaska and the nation, including the 8(a) program, and make sure we don’t inadvertently break it. Because when Alaska succeeds, America’s energy future becomes brighter and more dominant.
Steve Wackowski is the president and CEO of the Alaska Oil and Gas Association. Connor Hajdukovich is the executive director of the Resource Development Council for Alaska.