UPDATED: Smith praises Trump's pipeline permits boosting Canada–US oil exports

CALGARY — Premier Danielle Smith has applauded US President Donald Trump’s recent decision to issue several pipeline permits to facilitate cross-border transport of crude oil and petroleum products between the US and Canada, as well as a permit to construct a new pipeline.“Yesterday, the White House approved the advancement of multiple pipeline projects carrying Alberta oil to the United States,” Smith posted to her official X account on Thursday..“Expanding pipeline capacity to the US is something I’ve been advocating to this US administration since their last election. It has paid off.”Smith added that the announcement was “great news” for both Alberta and Canada as it had the “potential to unlock hundreds of billions in energy investment for our province and country.”“We hope the federal government moves this fast when it comes to our pipeline project submission in June,” Smith stated.“Let’s get these pipelines built!”In documents released by the White House on Wednesday, one of the permits authorizes the Bakken Pipeline Company to “construct, connect, operate, and maintain” pipeline facilities in Burke County, North Dakota, near the Canada–US border.The permit authorizing construction was issued to the Bakken Pipeline Company for pipeline facilities in Burke County, North Dakota.The company already operates extensive oil and gas pipeline networks spanning both countries.Additional permits were granted to Enbridge Energy — a subsidiary of Calgary-based Enbridge Inc. — for the continued operation and maintenance of existing cross-border pipelines, including facilities in Burke County, Pembina County, North Dakota, and St. Clair County, Michigan.Those lines form part of a broader network that moves Canadian crude into the US market.At least one of the permits replaces a previous authorization dating back to 1991, effectively renewing federal approval for long-standing infrastructure that carries Canadian oil south of the border.The approvals come as Enbridge continues to expand its footprint in both Canada and the US.Last year, the company signed off on a US$1.4 billion plan aimed at increasing the flow of Canadian oil sands crude into the US, even amid ongoing trade tensions between the two countries due to Trump’s tariffs.The announcement of the permits comes after a growing divide has emerged between stalled efforts to reach tidewater in BC and the relative ease of expanding export capacity into the US..Last month, Enbridge’s CEO, Greg Ebel, stated his company wouldn’t shoulder financial risks associated with building a new oil pipeline from Alberta to BC’s west coast in the hopes of then shipping Alberta crude onto Asian markets.At the time, Ebel reflected on Enbridge’s involvement in the Northern Gateway project — a $7.9 billion pipeline, which was intended to carry bitumen from Alberta to northern BC — describing how his company poured roughly $600 million into that project before it was cancelled in 2016.“The rug was pulled out from underneath us,” Ebel said at the time.“So that’s not the type of risk that we’re looking to take on at this time. We don’t need to with all the other opportunities.”

UPDATED: Smith praises Trump's pipeline permits boosting Canada–US oil exports

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