On November 16th Nebraska’s legislature unanimously approved a law that would reroute the Keystone XL pipeline, as TransCanada Corp. announced it could start building the southern portion of the controversial pipeline. Under the bill, the state would pay for a new environmental study for a new route for the pipeline, which would carry crude oil from Canada’s oilsands area to Texas refineries.
Nebraska and TransCanada Corp. agreed on November 14th to find a new route for the stalled pipeline. Under pressure from green groups, the U.S. State Department ordered the company to find a new route for the line in a decision that set back the pipeline by more than a year. Meanwhile, TransCanada said it could begin building the pipeline from the storage hub in Cushing, Oklahoma, to the Gulf Coast, where refineries are paying a premium for crude, due to a glut in supply.
Nebraska and TransCanada Corp. agreed on November 14th to find a new route for the stalled pipeline. Under pressure from green groups, the U.S. State Department ordered the company to find a new route for the line in a decision that set back the pipeline by more than a year. Meanwhile, TransCanada said it could begin building the pipeline from the storage hub in Cushing, Oklahoma, to the Gulf Coast, where refineries are paying a premium for crude, due to a glut in supply.
While it has secured many of the of the required regulatory approvals and rights-of-way for the Gulf leg of the controversial project, TransCanada said it will not go ahead without the blessing of the U.S. State Department, which delayed approval for the full project to late 2012 or early 2013.