Face to Face
Mike Meadors
Valdez Marine Terminal Operations Advisor
Published November 2004

Mike Meadors has worked for Alyeska Pipeline Service Company since he moved to Alaska from Bakersfield, CA in 1991. He started as a contractor, became an Alyeska employee in 1993 and has been a marine terminal operations advisor since 2001. Before moving to Alaska, Meadors worked on offshore construction projects in California, Brazil, Venezuela and the Gulf of Mexico. Away from work, Meadors and his wife Laura enjoy exploring Prince William Sound in their boat. During the winter they cross-country ski and snowshoe with their two golden retrievers.

Q: What does your job entail?

A: I have one of the best jobs at Alyeska. I’m one of two Valdez Marine Terminal operations advisors. My primary responsibility is to support the terminal manager and his team as we safely operate and maintain the terminal. I’m involved in a variety of issues; some challenging that require me to be out-front and visible, others more mundane and behind the scene. Recently, I’ve been the terminal operations representative on the Strategic Reconfiguration Preliminary Engineering Team.

Q: What is your most important current project?

A: Safe, daily operation of the marine terminal is always our first priority. I’m also working closely with the Valdez Strategic Reconfiguration Project Team toward two goals. We need to resize the terminal’s operating capacity to align with current and future throughput. Then we need to realign the workforce to best operate and maintain the new plant.

The terminal was originally built to handle about 2.1 million barrels of oil per day (BPD). The throughput has since declined to just less than one million BPD. The facility has become inefficient because it has too much capacity. It’s like we’re using a dump truck when all we need is a pick-up.

Scaling the terminal’s capabilities to match needs will make it simpler to maintain, safer to operate and easier on the environment.

Unfortunately, these changes will result in fewer jobs. The work to improve the facility is exciting because it will extend the marine terminal’s operational life. But it’s sobering when you think about the possible impact to friends and coworkers.

Q: What are your career goals?

A: I’m happy with my job. We have a lot of challenging work to do and I’d like to continue to be part of building the new marine terminal. I’m open to whatever the future may hold and I think Alyeska has a bright future.