Ministers hail launch of Trans Mountain expansion
CALGARY— Alberta Energy Minister Sonya Savage said the start of Trans Mountain pipeline expansion project construction marks a “positive step forward” for the country — thanks in no small part to the province’s advocacy.
Pipe needed to twin the existing project is on the ground in Alberta, according to a statement from Trans Mountain on Tuesday. The company promised to have it in the ground before Christmas. Meanwhile, more than 2,200 workers have been hired to begin building the project — everyone from administrative staff to heavy equipment operators.
Savage said the Alberta government has been tireless advocating for the project in a statement issued Tuesday.
“When others were criticizing our energy industry and the value of future pipelines, Albertans did not waver,” it read.
The United Conservative government has put significant resources into promoting Alberta’s oil and gas industry since winning office in April, including the establishment of a war room to combat critics.
Last July, the provincial government also launched a public inquiry into allegations that environmental groups use foreign funds to stymie oil infrastructure development. Trans Mountain CEO Ian Anderson, Savage and Natural Resources Minister Seamus O’Regan officially launched construction in the Greater Edmonton area at a press conference on Tuesday. Roughly 50 kilometres of pipeline will run from Sherwood Park, Alta. to Acheson, Alta.
Anderson says he’s “a little greyer” than he was10 years ago when planning began for an expansion of the Edmonton-to-Burnaby oil pipeline, but he’s still proud to oversee the official launch of Alberta construction.
O’Regan said the event and the opening of the Canadian part of Enbridge Inc.’s Line 3 export pipeline last weekend make it a “good week” for Canada.
Progress on the pipeline expansion was stalled in the summer of 2018 after a court ruling ordered Ottawa to better consult local First Nations and assess the impact of increased tanker traffic to local marine life.
The federal government reapproved the project in June.