The Trump administration reversed an Obama administration decision and issued a permit Friday to build the Keystone XL pipeline, clearing the way for the $8 billion project to be completed.
The State Department, responsible for reviewing the project because it crosses an international border, determined that building it serves US national interests. The State Department under the Obama administration reached the opposite conclusion as recently as two years ago.
However, the permit was signed by Tom Shannon, a senior official in the State Department, rather than Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, who is a former CEO of Exxon Mobil. Tillerson recused himself from involvement after environmental groups said it would be a conflict of interest for Tillerson to decide the pipeline’s fate.
The 1,700-mile pipeline will carry oil from tar sands in Alberta, Canada, to refineries along the Texas Gulf Coast. The pipeline would move roughly 800,000 barrels of oil per day, more than one-fifth of the oil Canada exports to the US. The pipeline’s opponents say the pipeline won’t help the US with energy needs because the oil is destined for export.
Portions of Keystone have already been built, however the final route through the US is still being litigated in affected states including Nebraska, Montana and South Dakota.
Additionally, TransCanada said Keystone won’t be built entirely with US steel because the company has already acquired most of the pipes from Canada and Mexico.