CALGARY, Alberta / OTTAWA (Reuters) – President-elect Joe Biden’s planned move to cancel the Keystone XL pipeline prompted Canada’s main oil-producing province of Alberta on Monday to threaten to sue as Ottawa is working to save the project. problems.
The abolition of the project would threaten Canadian jobs and the US-Canada relationship, as Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is trying to turn the page on the Donald Trump era, although the idea has attracted the support of environmental groups and US Progressive Senator Bernie Sanders.
A source told Reuters on Sunday that Biden would cancel an $ 8 billion project permit to worry about fossil fuels contributing to climate change, causing a blow to Canada’s energy sector.
The news sent actions to Keystone XL owner TC Energy on Monday and prompted Alberta Prime Minister Jason Kenney to urge Trudeau to contact the new Biden administration within the next 48 hours. Biden, a Democrat, is due to take the oath on Wednesday.
“It’s 11 o’clock and if that’s really the top priority, as it should be, then we need the Government of Canada to support Canadian workers, for Canadian jobs, for the Canadian-American relationship, right now. Kenney told a news conference.
He said Alberta has retained its legal adviser and said there was a “very solid” legal basis for claiming compensation under international free trade agreements if the pipeline is actually killed by the presidential fiat. Alberta’s financial exposure is just over C $ 1 billion ($ 783 million), Kenney said after the province invested in the pipeline last year, also known as KXL.
KXL is destined to transport 830,000 barrels a day of crude oil sands from Alberta to Nebraska, but has met with strong opposition from American landowners, Native American tribes and environmentalists. Outgoing Republican President Donald Trump supported the project.
Ottawa diplomats continue to engage with their US counterparts about the Keystone XL, said two sources close to the Keystone XL case, and one said TC Energy was still lobbying.
“We do not have a decision from the Biden administration at this time. We should continue to work, “said a source, adding that Trudeau has consistently supported the pipeline and will continue to do so.” It is not over until a decision is made public. “
“Although there have been reports suggesting that a decision is imminent, we feel it may remain possible for a few weeks,” a second source said.
Trudeau’s government had previously asked the president-elect not to stop construction. Canadian Minister of Natural Resources Seamus O’Regan said Monday in a statement that Canada will continue to put pressure on KXL with the Biden administration.
KXL owner TC Energy said in a statement Monday that the pipeline fits Biden’s vision of a cleaner, job-creating future. TC promised on Sunday that KXL will be fully operational with renewable energy by 2030.
The cancellation would be a blow to a group of Canadian nations known as Natural Law Energy, which intends to invest, said its chief executive Brian Mountain, although he added that the group has not yet closed its acquisition and there is no financial risk for First Nations.
KXL was first proposed 12 years ago, when it emerged that Alberta’s oil sands would quickly exceed the capacity of export pipelines. However, two other export pipeline projects, the Canadian government-owned Trans Mountain Expansion and the replacement of line 3 of Enbridge Inc., however, reduce the need for KXL.
TC Energy closed 4.5% at C $ 54.00 in Toronto on Monday.
($ 1 = $ 1.2762)
Additional reporting by Rod Nickel in Winnipeg and David Ljunggren in Ottawa; additional reporting by Kanishka Singh in Bengalarus; edited by Steve Orlofsky and Jonathan Oatis