The permit would have allowed TransCanada to operate the pipeline at a higher pressure than current federal regulations for oil pipelines in the US, subject to building the pipeline using stronger steel and operating under additional safety conditions.
After listening to concerns from the public and various political leaders, TransCanada has made the decision to withdraw the permit application. The company will build Keystone XL using the stronger steel but will operate it at a lower pressure, consistent with the current US regulations.
Keystone XL will still implement the additional safety measures that would have been required under the special permit. These measures offer an enhanced level of safety and would allow TransCanada to request a special permit in the future. These safety measures also will be consistent with those that have been implemented on the existing Keystone Pipeline.
Commercial operations of the first phase of the Keystone system began on 30 June 2010. Construction of the extension from Steele City, Nebraska, to Cushing, Oklahoma, is one-third complete and the pipeline is expected to be operational in 2011.
Article continues below…The Keystone XL is a 36 inch diameter crude oil pipeline stretching from Hardisty, Alberta, and running southeast through Saskatchewan, Montana, South Dakota and Nebraska. It will link up with a portion of the Keystone Pipeline that will be built through Kansas to Cushing, Oklahoma.
The pipeline will then continue on through Oklahoma to a delivery point near existing terminals in Nederland, Texas, to serve the Port Arthur marketplace.
When completed, the Keystone XL project will increase the commercial capacity of the overall Keystone Pipeline System from 590,000 bbl/d to approximately 1.1 MMbbl/d of oil. The $US12 billion system is 83 per cent subscribed with long-term, binding contracts that include commitments of 910,000 bbl/d for an average term of approximately 18 years.
The Keystone XL project received approval in March 2010 from both the South Dakota Public Utility Commission and the Canadian National Energy Board. Pending receipt of additional permits, construction is planned to begin in 2011.
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