Wednesday is the start of the Trans Mountain oil pipeline expansion, after the project had gotten the greet light the day before.
This long-awaited project, which cost about $34 billion, will twin an existing pipeline that runs from Alberta to the west coast.
This has been one of the most expensive infrastructure projects in Canadian history, with the pipeline taking more than four years to put together. However, this expansion should increase the shipping capacity from 300,000 barrels per day, to 890,000 barrels per day.
The expectation is that this will help open up global exports for Canadian oil. However, the federal government has spoken about their plans to sell the pipeline.
The federal government purchased the pipeline for $4.5 billion back in 2018 in order to speed up the process. However, the government has said that they do not intend to be the pipelines owner.
The plans to twin the existing pipeline has been in the works since 2013, with the project considered controversial due to the potential impact on the environment.
Photo: Taken from the Trans Mountain Facebook page.
