Crude oil $80 barrel Alaska economy - Arhive
Crude oil almost $80 a barrel Crude oil $80 barrel Alaska economy
JUNEAU — At last count, the price of Alaska North Slope crude was hovering just under $80 a barrel.Crude oil $80 barrel Alaska economy
That’s good news for Alaska’s economy.
Add to that the Legislature’s decision to tap into the Alaska Permanent Fund’s earnings to pay the bills and the state is suddenly a lot closer to a balanced budget.
“I saw one day where the Alaska oil price got slightly over $80 a barrel, but we’ve been in the high $70s for the last couple of weeks,” said Ken Alper, director of the tax division at Alaska’s Department of Revenue.Crude oil $80 barrel Alaska economy
Each time the price per barrel of oil climbs up, Alper has basically the same message.
“It’s good for Alaska’s economy to have higher oil prices, there’s no question about that,” he said.Crude oil $80 barrel Alaska economy
But, prices have to get higher — and stay higher — to have a lasting impact on the state’s budget.
“Should the current prices hold, we will have our first balanced budget in several years for fiscal year ’19,” Alper said.
Alaska could have a balanced budget next year if prices stay around $72 a barrel — that’s about $10 higher than the official forecast the Department of Revenue put out in March.
That’s the point when the state starts bringing in enough revenue from oil to pay all the bills. Up until 2018, that break-even price was a lot higher, at more than $90 per barrel.
But, the Legislature’s decision to draw money from the permanent fund’s earnings last session gives the state an additional $1.7 billion to spend. Now that the state is that much closer to a balanced budget, it takes a lot less oil revenue to close the gap.
Alaska’s Energy Desk is a public media collaboration focused on energy and the environment with partners KTOO in Juneau, Alaska Public Media in Anchorage, KUCB in Unalaska, Fairbanks Daily News-Miner in Fairbanks, KBRW in Utqiagvik and KYUK in Bethel.
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