Enbridge wins regulatory approval to build $1.61bn oil pipeline

Canadian pipeline projects regulator the National Energy Board has recommended that the federal government approves Enbridge Pipelines’ C$1.8bn oil pipeline construction plan.

The 182km pipeline will have the capacity to carry 570,000 barrels a day of crude and would link Edmonton, Alberta, to the province’s storage hub at Hardisty.

As part of the board’s review of the project, a public hearing has been conducted, for which several participants, including landowners and aboriginal groups, contributed.

The board collected their inputs and other evidence and included a number of conditions in its recommendation that Enbridge must comply with if the project is approved.

Enbridge was required to provide the National Energy Board with copies of its safety programmes and manuals, traditional land use investigations, an updated weed and clubroot management plan, as well as a post-construction monitoring report.

Enbridge has also secured approval from the board for the construction and operation of a new initiating pump station at its Edmonton terminal.

The company will also construct a new pump station at each of its existing Kingman and Strome stations, and associated facilities and infrastructure at its Edmonton and Hardisty terminals.

The board’s approval to construct and operate the facilities will only take effect on receiving approval from governor in council for the project. The board will then issue a Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity, as well as an order for the associated facilities.

The National Energy Board’s purpose is to regulate pipelines, energy development and trade in the Canadian public interest.

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Image: Enbridge building in Edmonton, Alberta. Photo: courtesy of Kyle1278.