Alaska native corporation builders and projects: subsidiary construction companies busy in Alaska and beyond.

• Author: West, Gail
• Position: SPECIAL SECTION: Building Alaska

Alaska Native Corporations have diversified extensively over the years since their formation and many today incorporate construction as part of their business models. In addition to providing jobs and dividends for shareholders, several of those corporations with construction subsidiaries are under contracts building in the Lower 48 and bringing fresh dollars to contribute to the Alaska economy.

Ahtna, Inc.

Roy Tansy, president of Ahtna Construction, says his company works in Alaska, but another of Ahtna's subsidiaries has an environmental construction project in Humboldt, California, that's more than $10 million, performing environmental and construction subcontract support work for Parsons and Chicago Bridge & Iron as part of the Pacific Gas and Electric's Humboldt Bay Power Plant decommissioning project.

"Not only do we see the profits of that work coming into Alaska but many of the support services are here, as well," Tansy says. "We should also say that many of our shareholders are working in support offices in the Lower 48, so they personally benefit from having those opportunities outside the state."

In-state, Ahtna Construction is one of several master service agreement contractors under contract with Alyeska Pipeline Service Company. "This work includes managing and running day-to-day operations at the Glennallen Response Base along the trans-Alaska [oil] pipeline. Ahtna Construction also executes critical project work for Alyeska Pipeline Service Company during the construction season in Alaska," Tansy says. "Much of the project work is civil in nature, which includes belowground mainline investigations and repair, trenching to repair and/or replace cathodic protection systems, and right-of-way maintenance. These sites can present us with varying challenges from water and ice to steep slopes."

This summer, Ahtna is also excavating and repairing high point vents along the pipeline.

"Our primary client is Alyeska," Tansy says, "and a lot of the work is time sensitive and deadline driven. Sometimes work is released on fairly short notice and we have to be prepared. Being nimble helps us meet our client's needs."

Tansy adds that being responsive to their client's needs also may involve working at sites in priority order. "With the high point vents, priorities can fluctuate up and down the line, so there may be a lot of mobing and remobing--moving employees and equipment to the site that's the next priority," he says.

While Ahtna...