ANCHORAGE, Alaska—
Oil executives with several firms operating in Alaska met with Gov. Sean Parnell at the Dena'ina Center in Downtown Anchorage Thursday for a noon luncheon hosted by Exxon Mobil Corp.Chief executives at the high-security, invitation-only event included Exxon Mobil’s Rex Tillerson, ConocoPhillips’ Jim Mulva and BP Exploration’s Bob Dudley. All three were scheduled to speak briefly at the luncheon, as well as Parnell.
Though the lunch was closed to the media and the public, Exxon called it purely a social luncheon, a meet-and-greet for lawmakers and producers.
The guest list appeared to include a who's-who in Alaska politics, with former governors Tony Knowles and Bill Sheffield in attendance.
Tony Palmer, a vice president for TransCanada, which has partnered with the state on a natural gas line under the Alaska Gasline Inducement Act, was also at the luncheon.
Some industry observers said Thursday's event may have been the first time in a long while that the heads of the big three oil producers in Alaska and so many power brokers were in the same room together.
Last year, Parnell announced that he is now focusing on a liquefied natural gas pipeline from the North Slope to an unspecified port in Alaska.
Valdez has long been pushed as a port for an LNG line, but a number of legislative leaders are pushing for a project that would go to Cook Inlet.There was no word on whether the gathering would include discussion of an LNG line. Lawmakers say their appearance at this closed meeting has been vetted by their legislative ethics staffers.
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