Premier Danielle Smith sounds confident about finalizing the remaining key pieces of the Alberta-Ottawa energy accord, but the endeavor appears increasingly complex. On Thursday, Smith reiterated Alberta's preference for a new oil export pipeline to a deepwater port in northern British Columbia, rather than one to southern B.C.
Pipeline Route Debate Intensifies
Speaking to reporters, Smith highlighted that opposition to the Trans Mountain expansion (TMX) project previously centered on increased tanker traffic from the Westridge Marine Terminal in Burnaby, B.C. Developing a pipeline to the lower mainland would only exacerbate congestion at the Port of Vancouver, she argued.
“In a very congested port like that, is there an appetite for a doubling, once again, of that amount of traffic? So that’s why I am a bit skeptical that that would be the appropriate route,” Smith said in Edmonton.
Advantages of Northern Route
Smith emphasized the benefits of a northern deepwater port, including reduced navigation through channels and faster access to Asian markets. “When you look further up the coast, you can cut three days off trans-Pacific transit,” she noted, citing South Korea and Japan as key destinations.
Her comments followed a Globe and Mail report indicating federal sources prefer a pipeline route to the Port of Vancouver, despite a federal tanker moratorium off northern B.C. Since last summer, Smith has advocated for a new greenfield bitumen pipeline capable of moving one million barrels per day to the Port of Prince Rupert.
Ongoing Efforts and Challenges
Alberta is actively working on a pipeline proposal, examining three potential routes in northwest B.C., and expects to submit it to the federal Major Projects Office this summer. The pipeline is a central element of the landmark memorandum of understanding (MOU) signed by federal and provincial governments last November, though the B.C. government and some Indigenous communities oppose a northern route.
Under the accord, Prime Minister Mark Carney's government declared an Alberta bitumen pipeline to Asian markets a priority and a project of national interest, provided it is paired with a carbon capture and storage network in the oilsands.
