Work starts in Montana on disputed Canada-US border oil pipeline (Keystone XL)

Border Report ^ | 7 April 2020 | MATTHEW BROWN, Associated Press

[BeauBo]

A Canadian company said Monday that it’s started construction on the long-stalled Keystone XL oil sands pipeline across the U.S.-Canada border, despite calls from tribal leaders and environmentalists to delay the $8 billion project amid the coronavirus pandemic.

A spokesman for TC Energy said work began over the weekend at the border crossing in northern Montana, a remote area with sprawling cattle ranches and wheat fields. About 100 workers will be involved in the pipeline’s early stages, but that number is expected to swell into the thousands in coming months as work proceeds, according to the company.

The 1,200 mile (1,930 kilometer) pipeline was proposed in 2008 and would carry up to 830,000 barrels (35 million gallons) of crude daily for transfer to refineries and export terminals on the Gulf of Mexico.

It’s been tied up for years in legal battles and several court challenges are still pending, including one that’s due before a judge next week.

TC Energy’s surprise March 31 announcement that it intended to start construction came after the provincial government in Alberta invested $1.1 billion to jump start work. Montana’s Department of Environmental Quality on Friday issued the final state permits the company needed, agency spokeswoman Rebecca Harbage said.

[BeauBo]

Leftists continue to seek to use another District Court Judge to rule in place of the duly elected President:

"A hearing on the request to block work is scheduled for April 16 before U.S. District Judge Brian Morris in Great Falls.

Keystone XL was rejected twice under former President Barack Obama because of concerns it would make climate change worse. President Donald Trump revived the project and later pushed through approval after Morris issued an order to block construction in 2018.

Morris in December denied an initial request to block construction because TC Energy said at the time no work was immediately planned.

Stephan Volker, an attorney for the environmental groups asking Morris to again intervene, said the company’s decision to “jump the gun” before next week’s hearing was an insult to the judge.

“We are confident the court will not be bullied, and will overturn President Trump’s second approval, just as he overturned President Trump’s first approval, as unlawful,” Volker said."

There is just no room for a 50 foot pipeline easement, without forcing local wildlife into extinction, and irreparably devastating the Global Ecosystem. We all would die!

[Paladin2]

Ping.

[Mr. K]

Here is the story as I heard it (and you WON’T hear on national TV)
1)) The Indians were paid by the oil companies for trucks crossing their land to ship oil. They were paid PER BARREL.

2) The oil company drew up plans to build the pipline. The cost to transfer the oil by pipeline was better.

3) They would have been able to ship much more oil through the pipeline, so they negotiated with the Indians for payments options. They would be using less roads and etc, and wanted a better price per barrel,

4) The Indians said FU. They still wanted to be paid the same price PER BARREL, even though they would be shipping much more oil with reduced wear and tear on the roads and stuff.

5) The oil companies said FU back, and moved the pipeline off the indian land.

6) The Indians STILL WANTED TO BE PAID despite the oil no longer crossing their land.

7) So they made up a story that this was now ‘ancient indian burial grounds’ and got the media involved (who hate the oil companies anyway)

DOES ANYONE HAVE CONTRADICTING INFORMATION?

[Magnum44]

[rktman]

“... forcing local wildlife into extinction, and irreparably devastating the Global Ecosystem...” Yup, just like it did in Alaska right ecowankers? Probably destroy polar bear habitat too.

[Fightin Whitey]

With the price of oil it’s hard to imagine any profit here.

Be good if they could scare up a few hundred jobs.

[dfwgator]

What about the Dental Floss?

[SaxxonWoods]

Pipeline construction looks past such temporary things.

There are billions of people worldwide who will enter their version of America’s ‘50s soon. And they don’t give a damn about global warming.

[Paladin2]

I'd guess that they could undercut Mr. Peabody's Buffet's railroad costs over time.

Unless we sink into a decade long deep recession, with the interest rates so low, it seems like a good bet if one is in the bidness.

I suspect that pipeline steel costs may have dropped recently.

If your investment horizon is ~10 years it could be a reasonable project. Hopefully I'll be around to see just how it turns out.

[Theoria]

Ya mean like the Chinese? We are gonna ‘reward’ the Chinese with such a wonderful export?

[SuperLuminal]

"With the price of oil it’s hard to imagine any profit here."

That's what obunghole and cuomoe said several years ago about pandemic masks...

[Fightin Whitey]

That's what obunghole and cuomoe said several years ago about pandemic masks...

I'll call you and raise you a couple millions in profit that Coomoe is making off masks, scarves, hospital gloves and gowns, sneaking-out-of-the-house-fines, and above all the staggering fees for ship-docking and also ventilators that kill the patients and open up more beds.

[Rio]

[FLT-bird]

Excellent! Get the pipeline built.

I remember in the 1970s when Gaia Worshipers whined that the Alaska pipeline would stop the Carribou herds from migrating because the herds would be scared of it. Turns out the Carribou love the pipline. They have to heat the oil a bit to send it through the pipeline so it won’t freeze. The result is the pipeline is a little warmer than the surrounding land. The Carribou love it for that reason and often hang out around the pipeline.