‘Another step in our broader effort to bring more Alberta oil to the world’
Premier applauds Keystone XL route approval by Nebraska officials
JAMES WOOD
CALGARY The Alberta government is hailing the approval of the Keystone XL pipeline in the United States, saying it points to the need for similar projects to move forward in Canada. On Monday, Nebraska’s Public Service Commission approved the passage of TransCanada’s Keystone XL pipeline through the state in a 3-2 vote, clearing the last major hurdle for the long-awaited project, which will connect Alberta’s oilsands to refineries on the U.S. Gulf Coast.
In a statement, Premier Rachel Notley said the “pipeline will mean greater energy security for all North Americans by making sure people have access to Alberta’s responsibly developed energy resources.”
“This is another step in our broader effort to bring more Alberta oil to the world, diversify our markets and maximize the value we as Albertans get. Today, U.S. decision-makers carefully considered a pipeline and granted an approval,” she said.
Notley was in Toronto to speak to the Empire Club as part of a crosscountry effort to make the case for pipelines, particularly Kinder Morgan’s expansion of the Trans Mountain line to the West Coast.
Trans Mountain has received federal approval, but B.C.’s NDP government and some municipalities and First Nations are trying to block the project.
Calgary-based TransCanada Corp. recently axed its proposal for the Energy East pipeline, which was intended to run to the Atlantic Ocean. It was also backed by the NDP government.
Notley said Canadian regulators need to follow the U.S. example.
“While we are very pleased with Nebraska’s approval, it underscores that Canadian regulators need to keep pace if we are going to build a truly diversified set of markets.”
In her speech to the Empire Club, Notley said Alberta must have access to new markets and end its dependence on the U.S. as the sole market for its energy.
“To do this, we need to build a Canadian pipeline to the ocean,” she said. “The best option is to go west, so that we have access to the Asia-Pacific markets.”
She stressed the economic importance of Alberta’s energy industry to Canada as a whole.
Notley’s government has been ambivalent toward Keystone as it focused on other pipeline projects.
In the 2015 provincial election, Notley said she would not follow the path of previous Tory premiers and lobby for the project in Washington, D.C.
She said at the time that there was “no realistic objective” to the visits since the pipeline was caught up in U.S. domestic politics and she wanted to see a greater focus on shipping refined crude products rather than raw bitumen.
United Conservative Party Leader Jason Kenney echoed former prime minister Stephen Harper’s comment that approval of Keystone was a “no-brainer.”
“It was unfortunate that the NDP could not bring itself to vocally support this critically important project,” he said.
Keystone was rejected by the Obama administration in 2015, but revived after the election of Donald Trump as president in 2016. It has become more important for Alberta as Canadian pipeline projects have been stalled or cancelled.
However, while Nebraska approved Keystone, it is not along TransCanada’s preferred route.
The panel ruled the new pipeline should be nearer to TransCanada’s existing pipeline in Nebraska to maximize monitoring and to reduce the impact on habitat for endangered species.
In a statement, Trans Canada CEO Russ Girling said the company would “conduct a careful review of the Public Service Commission’s ruling while assessing how the decision would impact the cost and schedule of the project.”
It underscores that Canadian regulators need to keep pace if we are going to build a truly diversified set of markets.