Tuesday 17 December 2019

Oil pipeline in Canada faces new legal challenge

Lawyers acting for groups of indigenous people are appealing against controversial plans to expand the Trans Mountain oil pipeline, claiming the government’s consultation scheme was inadequate.

Congestion in Canadian pipelines has forced the Alberta government to order production curtailments. The Trans Mountain expansion would nearly triple the pipeline's capacity to 890,000 barrels of oil per day.

However, the expansion has faced prolonged opposition from environmental activists, worried about oil spills, and some indigenous groups. This has caused investor uncertainty although the appeals have not stopped construction.

Alberta province is home to the world's third-largest oil reserves. Oil is moved from the province to the Pacific coast, where it is exported. Canada currently sells 99% of its oil to the US and aims to diversify imports to countries such as China.