US court blocks Keystone XL pipeline pre-construction work

A US federal court has refused TransCanada’s request to undertake pre-construction work on the $8bn Keystone XL pipeline, which is designed to transport crude from Alberta to the US Gulf Coast.

The latest setback for the Keystone XL project is likely to hinder TransCanada’s plans to commence construction on the 1,905km pipeline this year.

US District Court Judge Brian Morris ruled that the company cannot build worker camps for the pipeline in preparation for the construction of the pipeline.

However, the judge has permitted the firm to build and use pipe storage and container yards.

The latest ruling comes after Morris ruled last November that the US Government did not follow environmental laws when it approved the pipeline in 2017.

The November ruling meant that construction of the project would not proceed until the completion of new environmental reviews to the satisfaction of the court.

Following the ruling, TransCanada appealed to the judge to allow pre-construction work.

Sierra Club Senior Attorney Doug Hayes said: “Today’s ruling does nothing to change the obvious fact that Keystone XL will never be built. After a decade of trying to force this pipeline on the American people, it’s time for TransCanada to finally get the message and give up.”

The Keystone XL is expected to carry 830,000 barrels of crude a day from Hardisty to Nebraska.

It is seen as a key project to help provide pipeline capacity to Canada’s energy industry, which is suffered from a lack of sufficient pipeline space to ship crude.