Juneau, AK, USA. High oil prices are a boon for Alaska, whose credit rating recently went up to the coveted triple-A level. But waning oil production, unpredictable prices and looming pension costs remain challenges.

As oil prices go, so goes the fate of Alaska. With prices averaging over $110 a barrel, Alaska is experiencing a revenue boom unlike any other state, allowing it to recover from the recession as “a rock of stability,” as Governor Sean Parnell puts it.