Alaska: An Energy and Economic Analysis

Alaska has some of the highest electricity and gasoline prices in the country, which is not surprising because Alaska is large, remote, and sparsely populated. These factors lead to high costs for both gasoline and electricity. Even though Alaska has vast coal reserves, natural gas produces the majority of the state’s electricity. Alaska’s rivers and mountains make it well-suited for hydropower, which produces a fifth of Alaska’s electricity. Alaska produces a higher percentage of its electricity from petroleum liquids than almost any other state because many remote rural communities use diesel to generate electricity.