It’s been touted for months. Years, in fact.But on Wednesday the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion to the West Coast officially turned on the taps to finally allow 890,000 barrels per day of Alberta crude to hit tidewater. In the end, it was a mere formality.Late Tuesday the Canadian Energy Regulator (CER) granted the last 42 of so-called ‘Leave to Open’ decisions — technical reports, testing and inspection results — that demonstrate it can be safely opened for operation..In a statement, the company said the documents officially mark mechanical completion of the project. Both the existing and expanded pipelines are now able to transport crude oil and Trans Mountain has the ability to load cargoes from all three berths at the Port of Vancouver in Burnaby.“We were able to build 988 kilometres of new pipeline, 193 kilometres of reactivated pipeline, 12 new pump stations, 19 new storage tanks, and three new berths at Westridge Marine Terminal in Burnaby,” said Trans Mountain CEO Dawn Farrell. “We did this while adhering to the highest environmental, safety and social standards including respecting and working with local First Nations and Métis communities throughout the entire process.”.The original line in 1953 was the first to cross the Rocky Mountains. Then, as now, it was considered a technical marvel, traversing Jasper National Park.Although it is considered ‘mechanically’ complete, it will still take several more weeks to fill the line and begin commercial oil shipments. First oil was loaded into the line from Edmonton on April 16 and the pipeline was 70% full by volume as of Tuesday.It comes as offshore buyers continue to line up for Canadian crude. Earlier this week it was reported that India’s Reliance Industries had signed up to take about 2 million barrels.The purchase was heralded in Indian media as a thaw in Canadian relations even as the Indian government’s Ministry of External Affairs on Monday condemned the display of separatist slogans at a rally attended by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.“The timing of Reliance's purchase is noteworthy, coming at a time when diplomatic tensions between India and Canada have been heightened,” said Swarajya magazine, a right-wing news portal considered favourable to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party..Although Chinese buyers have also landed contracts, analysts expect most of the offloaded oil to go to refineries in California, which is only three days shipping time compared to 18-20 days to China and longer to India.There is also some question as to how many cargoes the company will realistically be able to ship from Vancouver due to logistical and regulatory constraints.Trans Mountain says it can deliver 34 tankers a month but some observers have suggested it may be more like 20. That’s because the Port of Vancouver has restrictions on daylight-only transit times based on factors like tidal currents.Analysts are also worried about pilot and tugboat availability through the narrow straits. Vancouver is also notoriously shallow in spots, which means the boats will only be able to carry restricted loads about 30% less than usual, which will impact the economics of long distance transport..Still, today is being marked as a milestone for Alberta oil producers and government coffers after 12 years of construction delays and $25 billion in cost overruns.“Our (government) wants to congratulate the Trans Mountain Corporation for its tenacity to have completed this long awaited and much needed energy infrastructure, and to thank the more than 30,000 dedicated, skilled workers whose efforts made this extraordinary project a reality,” Premier Danielle Smith and Energy Minister Brian Jean said in a joint statement.“(We) also want to thank the Federal government for seeing this project through. This is a great example of an area where the provincial and federal government can cooperate and work together for the benefit of Albertans and all Canadians.”
It’s been touted for months. Years, in fact.But on Wednesday the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion to the West Coast officially turned on the taps to finally allow 890,000 barrels per day of Alberta crude to hit tidewater. In the end, it was a mere formality.Late Tuesday the Canadian Energy Regulator (CER) granted the last 42 of so-called ‘Leave to Open’ decisions — technical reports, testing and inspection results — that demonstrate it can be safely opened for operation..In a statement, the company said the documents officially mark mechanical completion of the project. Both the existing and expanded pipelines are now able to transport crude oil and Trans Mountain has the ability to load cargoes from all three berths at the Port of Vancouver in Burnaby.“We were able to build 988 kilometres of new pipeline, 193 kilometres of reactivated pipeline, 12 new pump stations, 19 new storage tanks, and three new berths at Westridge Marine Terminal in Burnaby,” said Trans Mountain CEO Dawn Farrell. “We did this while adhering to the highest environmental, safety and social standards including respecting and working with local First Nations and Métis communities throughout the entire process.”.The original line in 1953 was the first to cross the Rocky Mountains. Then, as now, it was considered a technical marvel, traversing Jasper National Park.Although it is considered ‘mechanically’ complete, it will still take several more weeks to fill the line and begin commercial oil shipments. First oil was loaded into the line from Edmonton on April 16 and the pipeline was 70% full by volume as of Tuesday.It comes as offshore buyers continue to line up for Canadian crude. Earlier this week it was reported that India’s Reliance Industries had signed up to take about 2 million barrels.The purchase was heralded in Indian media as a thaw in Canadian relations even as the Indian government’s Ministry of External Affairs on Monday condemned the display of separatist slogans at a rally attended by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.“The timing of Reliance's purchase is noteworthy, coming at a time when diplomatic tensions between India and Canada have been heightened,” said Swarajya magazine, a right-wing news portal considered favourable to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party..Although Chinese buyers have also landed contracts, analysts expect most of the offloaded oil to go to refineries in California, which is only three days shipping time compared to 18-20 days to China and longer to India.There is also some question as to how many cargoes the company will realistically be able to ship from Vancouver due to logistical and regulatory constraints.Trans Mountain says it can deliver 34 tankers a month but some observers have suggested it may be more like 20. That’s because the Port of Vancouver has restrictions on daylight-only transit times based on factors like tidal currents.Analysts are also worried about pilot and tugboat availability through the narrow straits. Vancouver is also notoriously shallow in spots, which means the boats will only be able to carry restricted loads about 30% less than usual, which will impact the economics of long distance transport..Still, today is being marked as a milestone for Alberta oil producers and government coffers after 12 years of construction delays and $25 billion in cost overruns.“Our (government) wants to congratulate the Trans Mountain Corporation for its tenacity to have completed this long awaited and much needed energy infrastructure, and to thank the more than 30,000 dedicated, skilled workers whose efforts made this extraordinary project a reality,” Premier Danielle Smith and Energy Minister Brian Jean said in a joint statement.“(We) also want to thank the Federal government for seeing this project through. This is a great example of an area where the provincial and federal government can cooperate and work together for the benefit of Albertans and all Canadians.”
