Hello Neighbors
I'm Daniel Jensen and, when I'm not being the best ski dad I can, I'm an energy nerd. Actually, I'm an energy accounting nerd.
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I'm a Certified Professional Account invested in over 1GW of energy projects for our Cook Inlet Native Development Corporation. That's enough energy for 600,000+ Alaskan homes. My job is to make sure the business models, financing, and performance of all these energy projects are healthy.
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We've recently gotten a wakeup call at MEA that things might not be healthy here. MEA fuel costs will now rise 50.6% by 2028. Current plans are to import fuels from foreign markets to meet Alaska’s energy demand.
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Our MEA families and our wallets deserve better. I'm asking for your vote this April to be our advocate on the board for sensible diversification that gets our head out of the sand and gets our cheaper, cleaner local energy options to work.​​​​
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What's Happening - and What Can We Do?
Cost Increases are Speeding Up
The whole world is hungry for energy these days and we've got to build more, just as Cook Inlet gas deserves are declining rapidly. This has left MEA and other Alaska co-ops in a difficult situation. Costs aren't just going up - they're going up faster than they used to.
Some are choosing to double down on importing gas from overseas, while others are partnering together to diversify with proven Alaska sources that are often cheaper and always more stable.
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It's no secret that relying on overseas energy puts us at the mercy of volatile markets - just check gas prices since the start of war in the Middle East.
Diversify - But How?
Reliability is paramount, while balancing affordability and environmental impacts. It is unfortunate we are in this situation today to consider importing fuel to such an energy rich state.
As imported LNG is a near certainty to provide a bridge for more long-term solutions, I will be focused in minimizing the term of the imported fuel commitments so that there can be optionality as new generation resources are considered.
As with any business, concentration risks from suppliers or products should be avoided. I will strive for a balanced portfolio that considers risk in future planning. Approximately 73% of the Railbelt's generation comes from gas and that is an unacceptable level of concentration. I support clean energy projects that do not provide undue burden to rate payers, without detrimental impact to the environment and our fisheries.
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Distributed energy resources increase grid reliability and should absolutely be considered. Particularly as
intermittent renewable resources are considered, there is a benefit to geographical dispersion to reduce the
impact of intermittency across the grid. Energy efficiency and demand management should be promoted as a way to reduce the pain of high cost, high demand time periods.
Energy Accounting and Business Experience
Our families need MEA Board Members who will take ownership of these challenges and not come back to us with 50%+ cost increases in the future.
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I'm ready for that leadership challenge with experience built as a project developer, project investor, and independent power producer. My experience as a CPA working in corporate finance brings a quantitative and analytical background to decision making, with a strong financial acumen.
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I also bring experience in regulated utilities, having worked as a District Controller for Waste Connections, which owns Alaska Waste.
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Here at home, I serve as
Treasurer at Anchorage Ski Club, which owns and operates Arctic Valley Ski Area. As Treasurer, I've helped the ski area achieve nearly 300% revenue growth and transition
to a self-sustaining business model. I'm also a Board member at Launch Alaska, a local business accelerator program bringing energy, transportation, and industrial technologies to our economy.
