Scott Rhode
Editorial
Scott Rhode
Senior Editor
Monthly deadlines are a change for Scott, coming from the hourly grind of News Radio 650 KENI, where listeners heard his voice from 1996 until 2020. As Editor and Staff Writer, he polishes articles submitted by freelancers, compiles the Right Moves and Inside Alaska Business features for print, and helps take pressure off the managing editor. His broadcasting experience might even come in handy if or when Alaska Business expands into podcasting or video (watch this space for updates). Originally from South Dakota, Scott grew up in Eagle River and earned a Bachelor of Liberal Studies degree from UAA. He can sometimes be seen on stage in community theater productions.
In This Issue
New Oil on the North Slope
August 2026
In mid-May it was 19°F and windy at the Aurora Hotel in Deadhorse. As I stood in the parking lot surveying the surroundings, I chatted with a gentleman from Texas who works for Nabors Alaska Drilling and was in town as part of a crew tasked with getting a previously inactive drill rig up and running. He said that, according to his supervisor, spring is the windy season on the North Slope. The gusts were bracing, numbing the fingers holding my camera, but most of my attention was focused on what I could capture through the lens: work trucks, shipping containers, buildings obscured by snow whipped up by the wind.