Glenfarne and AGDC keep internal governance details secret

8 Star Alaska is a limited liability company based in Delaware that is now 75 percent owned by Glenfarne Alaska LNG LLC and 25 percent owned by the Alaska Gasline Development Corporation.

Glenfarne Alaska LNG LLC is owned by Glenfarne Services LLC of New York City.

The state-owned AGDC gave 75 percent of 8 Star Alaska to Glenfarne. 8 Star Alaska was created as a private subsidiary that holds all the planning work, engineering, research data, rights of way, permits, etc. for the proposed gasline project.

In exchange for the 75 percent share, Glenfarne agreed to pursue the project to where a final investment decision on whether to build the pipeline will be made. That work was estimated to be valued at about $150 million.

The company had planned to reach a final investment decision before the end of 2025, but it has been delayed. It might happen in March, Frank Richards, the president of AGDC said recently.

Reaching a final investment decision does not mean a decision will be made to build. It means a decision will be made to either go forward or not.

The state corporation is now a minority owner of 8 Star Alaska, with one of the four board seats on the company. Glenfarne has two of the seats and the fourth is a member of the public.

Under this structure, AGDC has zero control over the project, right? Sen. Bill Wielechowski asked Matt Kissinger of AGDC in a hearing this week.

“There are different ways to have control and influence in a corporation through the governance and that's not just strictly through votes of the board. There are usually some provisions that require unanimous consent and there are provisions that rely on the minority member to approve of. We have all of those in there,” Kissinger said.

Sen. Cathy Giessel then asked the right question of AGDC: “Can we see that document?”

“We’re unable to share those agreements. Those agreements are confidential and we’d need the permission of Glenfarne to do that,” Kissinger said.

Giessel said that she would like AGDC to ask Glenfarne for permission to provide redacted versions of the agreements that leave out confidential information and show the structure.

Kissinger said that there is commercial information in the agreements and it would expose weaknesses if they were released, but he said “We can take that back to our partner” to find out what Glenfarne is willing to tell the Legislature.

Giessel said she would like a reply from Glenfarne and AGDC. If the answer is no, she would like to know why the public can’t find out the governance structure of the entity that is 25 percent owned by the state.

It was a reasonable request by Giessel. It is telling that the Dunleavy administration is missing in action on this topic—having failed to provide basic documents that show what specific governance rights the state has maintained under the deal made with Glenfarne.

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