Regulator Backs Canada’s Trans Mountain Pipeline Expansion
- National Energy Board says oil pipeline is in public interest
- Recommends approval with 156 conditions, 16 recommendations
A tugboat secures a fence at the Westridge Marine Terminal, at the end of the Trans Mountain oil pipeline, in Burnaby, British Columbia.
Photographer: Darryl Dyck/BloombergCanada’s energy regulator recommended approval of the government-owned Trans Mountain pipeline expansion, clearing one of the major obstacles for the project to move forward.
The National Energy Board said in its report released Friday that it would impose 156 conditions on the project if the government ultimately approves it, and the regulator made an additional 16 non-binding recommendations to the government. The government of Canada had directed the NEB to look at the project again, examining in particular marine shipping risks, after a court ruling last August struck down its initial approval from 2016.