As rural Alaskans are already spending $8 a gallon for fuel, some even more, a new column from Alaska energy leaders and experts warns the Dan Sullivan-supported war in Iran could cause those prices to double, threatening shortages and scarcity that could prove catastrophic for rural Alaska families.
“Dan Sullivan is cheering on policies that leave rural Alaskans out in the cold — literally,” said Alaska Democratic Party Chair Eric Croft. “Families in Kotzebue, Emmonak, and Hooper Bay are already spending $8 a gallon to heat their homes, and they can’t afford to pay double that when the next fuel shipment comes in. Self-Serving Sullivan’s price hikes are a life or death issue for these families who are struggling to survive thanks to his toxic agenda.”
The piece lays out in stark terms the devastating consequences of the Sullivan-supported war in Iran for Alaskans: fuel costs are “quickly becoming untenable” for rural families, many of whom are already spending 45% of their income on energy with steep price hikes still to come. According to the chief executive of Kotzebue Electric Association, cited in the column, fuel quotes for the next shipments are “double what they were last year.”
Alaska Beacon: America doesn’t depend on the Strait of Hormuz — but rural Alaska does
April 23, 2026
All over the world, nations are grappling with the ripple effects of the war in Iran and the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, a critical artery for the global oil market.
But in much of Western Alaska — including the Aleutians, Alaska Peninsula, and Bering Sea coast — nearly all fuel has, at least in the recent past, been refined in Asia and shipped thousands of miles to reach its final destination, often on voyages that can take more than 40 days. These deliveries must occur within a narrow summer window, when sea ice retreats just long enough to allow access.
And planning for those shipments is happening now.
At a recent community meeting in Kotzebue, fuel suppliers laid out a sobering reality due to the recent market turmoil. Voluntary export controls in Japan and South Korea have introduced significant uncertainty into the availability of fuel for Western Alaska — regardless of price.
Tom Atkinson, the chief executive of Kotzebue Electric Association, said that fuel quotes for the cooperative are roughly double what they were last year. Fuel is by far the largest cost driver in rural electric systems, and when it rises, everything else follows.
Even so, Mr. Atkinson expects he will be able to secure supply for the cooperative. Prices will be high, but the fuel should arrive. He is far more concerned about smaller, upriver communities with fewer resources and even less flexibility. Their costs will almost certainly be much higher.
But the more troubling possibility is not just higher prices or the loss of assistance — it is supply itself. If deliveries are delayed or fall short, some communities could face shortages in the depths of winter, when a fuel shortage would become a true emergency.
When global systems falter, it is not the Lower 48 — or even more urban places in Alaska — that feels it first or most acutely. It is communities like Kotzebue, Emmonak, and Hooper Bay.