Fairbanks Pipeline Training Center visited by Rep. Mary Peltola

FAIRBANKS, Alaska (KTVF) - Representative Mary Peltola visited Interior Alaska on Friday, October 28, speaking to a class at the Fairbanks Pipeline Training Center.

The annual 2 to 3 week class is the culmination of a pipeline apprenticeship program, and is one of many taught at the complex in Fairbanks.

Multiple unions, including the Teamsters, Laborers and the Pipefitters Union, utilize the center for practice and instruction.

Peltola discussed the value of the center for Alaska’s economy, saying, “I see the future of Alaska. I see locally trained residents ready to fill jobs that are so important to ensuring that Alaska continue to safely and responsibly produce and deliver oil and gas for decades to come.”

“I really think it’s the work that you all are doing that are going to help us get out of this inflation rut. We need a real economy. We can’t have a real economy without real jobs,” Peltola said.

After speaking at the event, Peltola took a tour of the facilities, including a campus off of Peger Road. Apprentices at that facility are given the opportunity to practice multiple skills related to the construction, maintenance, and operation of pipelines.

The center also trains in plumbing, vehicle use, and the operation of heavy equipment.

Students in the program are often hired to work on the North Slope.

John Denny, Executive Director at the Fairbanks Pipeline Training Center explained, “As dispatches come in, they will be qualified and ready to go up there, and well-trained so they can go up there and work safely and responsibly and make sure we handle that task well.”

“We maintain the most highly trained and experienced workforce, we believe, in the world of oilfield development, so we’re always excited to do that and make sure that Alaska does it better than anybody else,” he added.

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