Company Gives Up on Keystone XL Pipeline

Republicans attack Biden while environmental groups rejoice
By Bob Cronin,  Newser Staff
Posted Jun 9, 2021 5:40 PM CDT
Given Biden's Opposition, Keystone XL Pipeline Dropped
Workers for TC Energy install a section of the Keystone XL crude oil pipeline at the US-Canada border north of Glasgow, Montana, in April 2020.   (TC Energy via AP)

More than a decade after the project was launched, and months after President Biden pulled a permit to block it, the company building the Keystone XL pipeline has called the whole thing off. TC Energy Corp. made the announcement Wednesday, saying the decision was made with the government of Alberta, the Washington Post reports. Alberta is not happy about it, or Biden's action. "We remain disappointed and frustrated with the circumstances surrounding the Keystone XL project, including the cancellation of the presidential permit for the pipeline's border crossing," Premier Jason Kenney said in a statement. Biden's action was such a priority for him that he took it on Inauguration Day, reversing one of the first moves former President Trump made when he took office. On Wednesday, Republicans jumped on Biden, per the Hill. "This is devastating news for our economy, jobs, environment and national security—and it's entirely President Biden's fault," said Republican Sen. Steve Daines of Montana.

The $9 billion project was designed to move 830,000 barrels a day of Canadian crude from Alberta to Nebraska, per the Wall Street Journal, then to Gulf Coast refineries. It was opposed by environmental groups, US landowners, and Native American tribes, per NBC. Biden agreed with the environmental organizations that sending large quantities of crude through the US isn't compatible with the climage change-fighting goal of shifting to cleaner energy. In addition, oil prices have fallen since the idea was hatched. Environmental groups were joyful after the announcement. "When this fight began, people thought Big Oil couldn’t be beat," said the founder of 350.org, which organized sit-ins at the White House over the project. "But when enough people rise up, we’re stronger even than the richest fossil fuel companies." The American Petroleum Institute, which supported the pipeline, blamed "political obstructionism." (More TransCanada Keystone XL pipeline stories.)

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