Weather factors: StormGeo forecast? Providing 'mission critical' Arctic data.

• Author: Strieker, Julie
• Position: OIL & GAS - Company overview

Weather is a constant topic of conversation in Alaska, but conversations about Alaska weather go well beyond small talk. The weather affects everything from how many layers of clothing a person puts on to whether the truck will start if it's not plugged in to matters of life and death.

For companies working in Alaska, especially in the oil and gas sectors on the North Slope, offshore, or in the air, having timely, accurate weather forecasts is essential. Alaska weather has direct consequences on business and is the direct cause of most disruptions.

That's where StormGeo comes in. The global commercial forecasting service, which encompasses Houston, Texas-based ImpactWeather, provides clients with personalized weather forecasts to help them do business effectively and safely in one of the world's harshest climates.

"In the Arctic, everything that you do is mission critical," says Chris Wolf, the Houston director of marketing in North America for ImpactWeather/StormGeo. "So weather plays a very important role in making good business decisions. The service we provide allows our clients to make the best possible decisions when faced with weather challenges."

The company is a leader in helping companies work more safely in risky Arctic environments. StormGeo provides forecasts for clients in the Beaufort and Chukchi seas off the Alaska coast, the Sea of Okhotsk and Kara Sea off the Russian coast, Barents Sea in Norway, and Baffin Bay, Greenland.

Diverse Client Mix

StormGeo clients are companies working offshore, the media, renewable energy, and shipping industries. The company is expanding rapidly, becoming aviation certified and increasing its client base in Alaska and around the world.

StormGeo can help companies choose the best site for a wind farm and how much energy a turbine can produce, for instance. It can help forecast how much energy a hydroelectric plant can generate from a rainstorm or how waves generated by a storm will impact an offshore oil rig. It can map out a route across the North Pacific for a vessel traveling between North America and Asia optimized for safety, time, fuel consumption, and emissions. In an era of climate change and elevated incidences of extreme weather, StormGeo s risk assessment services are increasingly sought out.

StormGeo's client list is confidential, but Wolf uses the popular reality television show "Ice Road Truckers," of which she is an avid fan, as an example of what the company provides.

If one of the drivers had a cargo that had to be delivered within a specific window, StormGeo's forecaster in Anchorage, McLean Barnett, could give the driver a...