The good news is the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion project is still under construction. The bad news is it’s moving agonizingly slowly and costs are going through the roof..Since the federal government purchased the line a few years ago, the projected cost of construction has nearly tripled from $7.4 billion to $21.4 billion. Nothing shoots the costs of a project through the roof more effectively than government management of a project. It is little wonder that the original owner — Kinder Morgan — fled the project as costs and delays continued to mount before they even got a shovel into the ground. The Trudeau government was forced to take ownership of the pipeline at that point. They had managed to kill every other major new pipeline project in Canada. If Trans Mountain were to fail, they could be facing a revolution in Alberta..In February of this year, Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland announced the government would not put any more public money into the project. They claimed that private investment will fill any new costs as they move forward. I can’t see what private company in its right mind would sink a nickel into that project right now..I expressed doubt on social media of the pipeline ever getting finished and was quickly chastened by others who assured me that work was progressing on the line. Due to strict non-disclosure agreements placed on everybody working on that line, it was tough to ascertain this..Edmonton journalist and photographer Tom Braid recently traveled the pipeline route and shared a number of photos of the work in progress in different locations. The project still has a long way to go in order to reach the finish line but it was reassuring to see people hard at work upon it..Below are pictures of pipeline work in Eastern BC.. Valemount1Valemount BC by @YegTomBraid . Valemount2Valemount BC by @YegTomBraid .In Western Alberta, much of the pipe has been buried while work continues on the rest.. entwistle1Trans Mountain construction could again be delayed. . Wabamun1Trans Mountain construction near Wabamun. .So as can be seen, the line is being taken seriously and there is a lot of work happening on it. Some conspiracy theorists hold the view that Trudeau bought it to shelve it. That is not the case.. wabamun2Wabamun AB by @YegTomBraid .It is heartening to see activity going on and in knowing that progress is being made, albeit slowly..I do however remain skeptical the line may ever actually be completed. The process for this expansion began nearly a decade ago and it still remains only half completed. I’m at a stage where I’ll believe it when I see it..Pressure from environmental groups is still mounting against the line. As construction nears the Burnaby terminus near Vancouver, we can look forward to many protests and delays. One can hardly read a story about the expansion without hearing from one “expert” or another claiming that the line is financially nonviable and that the government should shut it down and cut their losses. How much longer is the federal government willing to keep pressing ahead with a pipeline expansion they philosophically oppose?.All that said, if indeed the government wants to finally get this project done, the time to step on the gas is right now..Energy prices are at record levels and the world is hungry for Canada’s energy products. National support for increasing domestic energy security and expanding local infrastructure is higher than we have seen in decades due to the Russia/Ukraine conflict. While activists will always oppose any work on the line, the majority of the Canadian public would be supportive of getting this thing moving..It doesn’t really have to take this long and it doesn’t have to be tough to get the line in the ground. The government just needs to get out of the damn way..The Trans Mountain pipeline expansion isn’t even a new pipe. All it involves is laying a pipeline right next to an existing pipeline. The right-of-way is already cut in that area and a line has been safely operating there for more than 60 years. We aren’t talking about going into a virgin area and creating new ecological disruption. It is just a matter of expanding a right-of-way in the trees a bit which would hardly be noticed by Mother Nature..The problem as always is government. This line expansion involves literally thousands of permits and licenses. The duplication in applications, studies, consultations and paperwork in general is insane and totally unnecessary. It has spawned a fantastic cottage industry of consultants and bureaucrats who thrive on redundancy, delays and red-tape. The bulk of that red-tape could be cut and it wouldn’t impact the environment in the slightest. That would take some courage on the part of the government to take on the entrenched special interests though and this administration tends to be lean on courage..The federal government has to put their foot down with the BC government. The court challenges are done, the assessments are done and this thing needs to get moving. Meanwhile the BC government’s still is trying to add new conditions to hinder the project. This is out of the province’s jurisdiction and they need to be firmly reminded of it. Again though, I doubt the federal Liberals are eager to upset lower mainland BC voters..Reports on the progress and activity on the Trans Mountain expansion construction has been purposely muted. Perhaps the government is hoping to get it done under the radar and avoid more critique from environmental activists. This strategy appears to be failing as the project progress continues to slow while costs explode..We can’t assume it will be done simply because some line is already in the ground. Most of the Keystone XL pipeline was completed too before it was stopped in its tracks..If the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion is ever to get finished, the federal government is going to have to step up. They bought it (with our money). The responsibility lands on their laps. They can’t continue with this half-hearted effort to build the line. They need to unapologetically set out a plan to get it done and get on with it..Otherwise the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion project is sure to die a slow and expensive death without ever having moved a drop of oil. Just as the Keystone XL line did..Cory Morgan is Opinion & Broadcast Editor for the Western Standard.cmorgan@westernstandardonline.com
