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$1.3B cost to Alberta

Keystone XL pipeline project officially terminated

Jun 9, 2021 | 2:58 PM

The Keystone XL pipeline project has officially been terminated.

TC Energy and the provincial government confirmed the news in separate news releases Wednesday afternoon.

The government release says the two parties reached an agreement for an orderly exit from the KXL project and partnership. It adds the two parties will continue to explore all options to recoup the government’s investment in the project.

According to the province, “final costs to the government are expected to be materially within $1.3 billion, in alignment with previously disclosed costs.”

Alberta had invested $1.5 billion in equity investment and a $6 billion loan guarantee in the project.

On Jan. 20, 2021, his first day in office, U.S. President Joe Biden cancelled former President Donald Trump’s presidential permit for the pipeline’s border crossing.

In the release, Premier Jason Kenney expressed disappointment and frustration, particularly with the cancellation.

“Having said this, Alberta will continue to play an important role in a reliable, affordable North American energy system,” he says in the release. “We will work with our U.S. partners to ensure that we are able to meet U.S. energy demands through the responsible development and transportation of our resources.”

In its release, TC Energy says it will continue to coordinate with regulators, stakeholders and Indigenous groups to meet its environmental and regulatory commitments and ensure a safe termination of and exit from the project.

The project would have seen up to 830,000 barrels of oil per day transported from Alberta to Nebraska. The 1,930-kilometre pipeline was expected to cost about US$8 billion.