Ketchikan, Alaska – In front of a packed, joint Ketchikan Chamber and Rotary meeting, Governor Sean Parnell Monday signed legislation authorizing the Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority (AIDEA) to finance the Bokan and Niblack mines on Prince of Wales Island. Senate Bill 99 also provides a loan of up to $18.6 million for the Blue Lake hydroelectric energy project in Sitka. Senator Lesil McGuire sponsored SB 99.

“This legislation will go a long way toward creating new opportunities for Alaskans and growing Southeast Alaska’s economy as a whole,” Governor Parnell said. “By authorizing AIDEA to issue bonds for the Bokan and Niblack mines, as well as the Blue Lake Expansion Project, we are moving these critical projects, and the many jobs they will create, one step closer to reality. I want to especially commend Senator Lesil McGuire for her work on this crucial legislation.”

These mining projects can be anchor employers for high-paying jobs in Southeast. The governor was joined by mayors from Prince of Wales Island, Ketchikan and Sitka, and Deantha Crockett of the Alaska Miners Association.

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