TransCanada Granted U.S. Permit for Keystone XL Pipeline

[thackney]

TransCanada Granted U.S. Permit for Keystone XL Pipeline
http://oilpro.com/post/30611/transcanada-granted-us-permit-keystone-xl-pipeline
by Meenal Vamburkar, March 24, 2017

After more than 8 years of political haggling over both its future and its benefits, the Keystone XL oil pipeline running from Canada to America’s heartland has been approved by President Donald Trump.

The move overturns a 2015 decision by former President Barack Obama. During his campaign, Trump vowed to support energy companies and advocate for new infrastructure. After taking office, one of his first acts was to invite TransCanada Corp., the pipeline’s builder, to reapply for approval. The $8 billion project will span 1,179 miles (1,897 kilometers), crossing Montana, South Dakota and Nebraska, where it will connect with the existing Keystone system, which runs to the Gulf Coast.

“This is a significant milestone for the Keystone XL project,” said TransCanada Chief Executive Officer Russ Girling in a statement announcing the approval. “We greatly appreciate President Trump’s Administration for reviewing and approving this important initiative and we look forward to working with them.”

Trump is scheduled to speak about his decision at 10:15 a.m. in Washington, according to White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer....

[thackney]

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/energy-environment/wp/2017/03/24/trump-administration-grants-approval-for-keystone-xl-pipeline/?utm_term=.cd2df8d40c24

...As a result of the approval, TransCanada will drop an arbitration claim it filed for $15 billion in damages under the North American Free Trade Agreement. And Trump made no mention of using U.S. steel, as he earlier said would be required of any new pipeline. TransCanada purchased steel pipe about four years ago, only half coming from U.S. mills. The White House said earlier this month that the requirement would be waived for the Keystone XL....

...In a statement Friday, the State Department said that in reviewing TransCanada’s application in light of Trump’s recent executive order, officials determined that issuing a permit “would serve the national interest.” It said the undersecretary who signed the permit, Thomas A. Shannon Jr., had “considered a range of factors, including but not limited to foreign policy; energy security; environmental, cultural and economic impact; and compliance with applicable law and policy.”

Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, the former chief executive of ExxonMobil, had recused himself from the decision....

[thackney]

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/03/24/business/energy-environment/keystone-oil-pipeline.html?_r=0

...The pipeline still faces hurdles before it can be built. It needs the approval of the Nebraska Public Service Commission and local landowners who are concerned about their water and land rights. Protests are likely since the project has become an important symbol for the environmental movement, with the Canadian oil sands among the most carbon-intensive oil supplies. Mining the oil sands requires vast amounts of energy for extraction and processing.

In addition, interest among many oil companies in the oil sands is waning amid sluggish oil prices. Extraction from the oil sands, situated in the sub-Arctic boreal forest, is expensive. Statoil and Total, two European energy giants, have abandoned their production projects. In recent weeks, Royal Dutch Shell agreed to sell most of its oil sands assets for $8.5 billion. And Exxon Mobil wrote down 3.5 billion barrels of reserves, conceding the oil sands were not economically attractive enough to develop for the next few years at least.

Nevertheless, Canadian production continues to grow as projects that were conceived when prices were higher begin to operate. And the Keystone effort is central to the future of TransCanada, the pipeline builder and a major force in the Canadian oil patch....

[Smokin Joe]

http://www.ogj.com/articles/2017/03/us-state-department-issues-long-awaited-permit-for-keystone-xl-pipeline.html

>snip<

Next steps along route

In Nebraska, where landowners had expressed concern about possible leaks from the proposed pipeline adversely affecting water supplies in the Ogallala Aquifer, Gov. Pete Ricketts (R) said Keystone XL’s receiving its presidential permit approval would help secure energy infrastructure in the Cornhusker State as well as nationally while creating jobs and improving the country’s energy security.

“The project will also benefit Nebraska by bringing an estimated additional $11.8 million in property tax revenue in the first year to 12 Nebraska counties,” he said.

TransCanada applied for Nebraska PCS approval of a route for the Keystone XL pipeline on Feb. 16, according to the agency’s web site. Formal interventions had to be submitted by Mar. 22, and a planning conference will be held 7-10 days after that date.

More at link...http://www.ogj.com/articles/2017/03/us-state-department-issues-long-awaited-permit-for-keystone-xl-pipeline.html