TransCanada’s Keystone Pipeline currently extends from Hardesy, Alberta to Wood River and Patoka, Illinois delivering 435,000 barrels of shale oil crude to refineries in those cities. The Keystone XL extension would include another route which would extend from Hardesy to refineries in Houston and Port Arthur, Texas. The extension would add an additional 510,000 barrel per day delivered to U.S. refineries. As proposed, the project would cost $13 billion and create over 20,000 jobs. Additionally, the crude delivered by this pipeline would make the U.S. less dependent on oil from unstable and unfriendly governments in the Middle East, Africa and South America.
Last week the Obama regime, via the State Department, delayed until 2013 a decision to move forward with the Keystone XL Pipeline. The delay is a blatantly political move made to curry favor with Obama’s enviro-wacko, anti-business base and put off a decision until after the 2012 elections. As always, Obama will put his political fortunes before the good of the country and her 300 million citizens.
Responding to the Obama decision, Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper said Sunday that he was looking at exporting more oil to China after the United States delayed a decision on a controversial pipeline.
“President Barack Obama’s administration last week put off a decision on Keystone XL project after a major protest campaign by environmentalists, who say the pipeline would be prone to accidents and worsen climate change.
The conservative Canadian leader, taking part in a summit in Hawaii hosted by Obama said the pipeline decision had produced “extremely negative reactions” and that he discussed oil exports with Chinese President Hu Jintao.
“This does underscore the necessity of Canada making sure that we are able to access Asian markets for our energy products,” Harper told reporters. “I indicated that yesterday (Saturday) to President Hu of China.“
The Harper government has pressed Obama to approve the 1,700-mile (2,700-kilometer) pipeline extension, which would stretch through Montana,South Dakota,Nebraska,Kansas and Oklahoma before ending up in Texas.
Canada, the pipeline’s lead company TransCanada, and Obama’s Republican opponents say the $7 billion project would provide the United States with a stable source of energy from an ally and create thousands of jobs.
“I remain optimistic that the project will eventually go ahead because it makes eminent sense,” Harper said.
“This project is obviously what’s in the best interest not just of the Canadian economy but also of the American economy,” he said.
UPDATE: One of the major objections of Nebraskans was that the pipeline would cross the massive Ogallala Aquifer which underlies most of Nebraska. However, as of this morning, TransCanada has issued a statement saying that they will re-route the pipeline presumably to avoid the aquifer. It will be interesting to see what positive (snicker) response they will get from the Snake Department.
