Oct. 5--Denali Pipeline President Bud Fackrell gave additional details on the company's gas pipeline planning effort at the Alaska Oil and Gas Symposium in Anchorage Sept. 23.

Fackrell said that most of the chilled pipeline would be buried, while other segments would be built above-ground through earthquake-prone areas and major river crossing. The gas pipeline will be placed on vertical support members similar to the procedure used for the trans-Alaska oil pipeline.

The company in 2009 will also begin studies of long-term in-state gas needs and will ramp up training initiatives, he said. The in-state needs assessment is required by the U.S. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.

Alaska groups like the Alaska Natural Gas Development Authority and Enstar Natural Gas Co. are working on ways of getting North Slope gas to consumers in the state, he said.

Denali is focused on the big pipeline, but the company intends to work closely with these groups. Fackrell said Denali has established five take-off points for gas within Alaska and is setting up a special engineering team to work with groups like ANGDA and Enstar, which want to take gas from the pipeline.

Natural gas liquids, as well as conventional natural gas, will be available at the take-off points. To take gas from the high-pressure pipeline, the pressure must be reduced. When that happens, gas liquids like propane and butane drop out of the gas, Fackrell said.

Studies are now being done of an idea to ship propane to communities on the Yukon River from a designated take-off points where the pipeline will cross the Yukon, he said.

"Training is a monumental task. We're concerned about where we will get the people to build this project," he said. "Fortunately, our owners, BP and ConocoPhillips, have had job-development programs underway for years and we hope to tap into this experience."

Denali intends to cooperate with the state of Alaska in job training, he said.

"We know how to build a pipeline like this, but getting the people will be one of our biggest challenges," he said.

Training efforts need to focus on young people currently still in school. They'll need to be ready when the construction is set to begin.

Much of the existing skilled technical and professional workforce is aging.

"People now in their 50s will not be working on this project, most likely," Fackrell said.

At peak construction, the pipeline will require 10,000 workers on the Alaska portions of the route.