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From where do you want your oil, TransCanada asks

Keystone XL planner TransCanada says project is fundamentally about the source of North American crude oil imports. Photo courtesy TransCanada CALGARY, Alberta, Nov. 5 (UPI) — The fundamental question over the Keystone XL debate is whether to use domestic oil or oil imported from Venezuela or the Middle East, TransCanada said. TransCanada asked the U.S. State Department to pause the review process for the Keystone XL pipeline while it waits for route decisions from Nebreaska’s government. The State Department refused the request . Mark Cooper , a spokesman for the company, said in an emailed statement TransCanada would continue to focus on building the pipeline. "The fundamental question remains: Do Americans want to continue to import millions of barrels of oil every day from the Middle East and Venezuela or do they want to get their oil from North Dakota and Canada through Keystone XL?" he said. "We believe […]

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Justin Trudeau stumps for low-carbon economy

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau stresses role of clean-energy jobs during introductions to the Canadian people. Photo by Heinz Ruckemann/UPI OTTAWA, Nov. 5 (UPI) — During challenging times, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said the nation’s economy and job growth would revive on the back of cleaner energy. In a last-minute October surge, the Liberal Party in Canada emerged victorious in national elections, pushing the Conservative Party led by Stephen Harper into the opposition. As prime minister, Harper had tried to expand Canada’s energy reach outside of North America at the same time as lobbying in favor of new oil infrastructure, like the Keystone XL oil pipeline planned through the United States. "We [are] committed to fighting climate change and protecting our environment," he said in an open letter to the Canadian people. Canada’s economy relies heavily on the oil and natural gas sector. With much of its export […]

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TransCanada says it will build only one Energy East export terminal

A depot used to store pipes for Transcanada Corp’s planned Keystone XL oil pipeline is seen in Gascoyne, North Dakota November 14, 2014. TransCanada Corp scrapped plans to build a port in Quebec and said on Thursday it will have only one crude oil export terminal for its Energy East pipeline project. The move comes days after TransCanada asked the U.S. State Department to pause its review of the company’s long-delayed Keystone XL pipeline, a request that Washington turned down amid speculation President Barack Obama will ultimately reject the pipeline. The 1.1 million barrel-per-day Energy East project is intended to carry crude from Alberta across Canada to New Brunswick. Calgary-based TransCanada had originally planned to build two ports for shipping crude overseas by tanker – one at the pipeline terminus in Saint John, New Brunswick, and the other in Cacouna, Quebec. However, the company abandoned the Cacouna location in […]

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Enbridge Reports Loss as Charges, Pipeline Delay Take Toll

Enbridge Inc. reported a loss in the third quarter as one-time charges and a delay in startup of a pipeline to Eastern Canada dragged on earnings. Canada’s largest pipeline company reported net loss of C$609 million ($463 million), or 72 cents a share, compared with a loss of C$80 million, or 10 cents, a year earlier, according to a statement Thursday. Excluding one-time items, per-share profit missed by 3 cents the 50-cent average of 13 analysts’ estimates compiled by Bloomberg. Enbridge has been transferring assets to affiliates such as Enbridge Income Fund Holdings Inc. which contributed to C$351 million in costs in the quarter, along with C$654 million in one-time expenses related to changes in the value of derivatives. The delay of the reversal of Line 9, running from from southern Ontario to Quebec and initially expected to be in service in early 2015, and now will start deliveries […]

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Canadian Crude Still Flows to U.S. Despite Keystone Pipeline Delay

TransCanada Corp. TRP 0.92 % ’s decision to postpone the Keystone XL Pipeline won’t have much effect on the U.S. energy industry, experts say, largely because American refiners have found other ways to get crude oil from Canada. Oil imports from Canada set a new record in August, averaging 3.4 million barrels a day, according to data released Monday by the U.S. Energy Department. In fact, the U.S. has bought 64% more Canadian crude so far this year than it did in the same stretch of 2008, the year TransCanada first asked the U.S. government for permission to build the pipeline that would run from Alberta to Texas. That is an extra 1.2 million barrels of oil flowing into the U.S. from Canada every day, or 45% more crude than Keystone XL would have carried had it been constructed. On Monday, TransCanada asked the State Department, which reviews cross-border […]

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TransCanada Profit Falls 12%, But Results Top Expectations

TransCanada Corp. TRP 0.92 % on Tuesday reported a 12% decline in third-quarter earnings and said it hit the pause button on its controversial Keystone XL project to best assure its long-term success. Calgary, Alberta-based TransCanada late Monday said it had asked the U.S. State Department to suspend its permit application for Keystone XL while awaiting approval in Nebraska regarding the pipeline’s route through that state. “It’s our view that the State Department process should not continue in the current time in its current path if there’s going to be new information provided from a review in Nebraska,” TransCanada Chief Executive Russ Girling said during a conference call on Tuesday. The administration of President Barack Obama had been expected to reject the long-delayed project, which would carry 830,000 barrels of Canadian crude a day from landlocked Alberta to refineries on the U.S. Gulf Coast. The pipeline operator has to […]

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TransCanada Suspends Request for Permit to Build Keystone Pipeline

Photo A field near Bradshaw, Neb., through which the Keystone XL oil pipeline would run. TransCanada, the company seeking to build the 1,179-mile pipeline, wants to delay the project. Credit Nati Harnik/Associated Press WASHINGTON — The company seeking to build the Keystone XL oil pipeline asked the Obama administration on Monday to suspend its yearslong review of the project, potentially bringing an abrupt halt to a politically charged debate that had become part of a broader struggle over President Obama ’s environmental policies. It was not immediately clear whether the administration would grant the request, which was swiftly denounced by environmental activists as a bid to dodge a near-certain rejection of the pipeline. Allowing the delay would push off a decision until after the 2016 presidential election. The company’s request introduced a new element of uncertainty into the administration’s decision-making process, offering the potential to free Mr. Obama from […]

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Husky CEO Sees Canada-Only Carbon Tax as `Politically Suicidal’

Husky Energy Inc. Chief Executive Officer Asim Ghosh has a stern warning for Canadian political leaders considering changes to climate policy: don’t go it alone with a carbon tax. The Canadian oil producer controlled by Hong Kong billionaire Li Ka-Shing would support a tax if it’s applied broadly and at least includes the rest of North America, Ghosh said Friday on a conference call to discuss third-quarter earnings results. “It would be politically suicidal for us to do a mea culpa and hang our neck out in a way that disadvantages the industry here,” Ghosh said. “It has to be across the board and Canada as a jurisdiction or Alberta as a jurisdiction cannot be disadvantaged.” Alberta Premier Rachel Notley is planning changes to the government’s climate policy after already raising an existing carbon levy on the oil-producing province’s biggest emitters. Her New Democratic Party took power in May. […]

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Canadian Oil Sands calls Suncor bid undervalued, exploitive

Canadian Oil Sands says its weathering weak market, recommending shareholders reject unsolicited bid from rival Suncor. Photo courtesy of Canadian Oil Sands CALGARY, Alberta, Oct. 30 (UPI) — While posting a heavy loss for the quarter, Canadian Oil Sands Ltd. said it was advising against what it considers an undervalued bid by rival Suncor. Canadian Oil Sands, among the largest owners in the Syncrude joint venture production group in northern Alberta, said its operating expenses fell to around $5 per barrel, its net debt declined and capital expenses were down 62 percent to $63.5 million. The company said it’s achieved around $750 million in cost reductions during the first nine months of the year. "Canadian Oil Sands is demonstrating its ability to weather this period of low oil prices and even a modest improvement in oil prices will generate robust expansion of cash flow," President and Chief Executive Officer […]

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Canadian market forces Shell’s hand

Weak oil economy and the lack of pipeline infrastructure caused Royal Dutch Shell to shelve Canadian oil sands project. File photo by Brian Kersey/UPI CALGARY, Alberta, Oct. 28 (UPI) — An uncertain market and the lack of infrastructure needed to move Canadian oil to the global market means it’s time to scrap an Alberta oil project, Shell said. Royal Dutch Shell said it would no longer continue with the construction of its Carmon Creek project in Alberta, Canada, and take a $2 billion write down for the loss. Sanctioned in 2013, the company said it had moved in early 2015 to retool construction operations at the oil sands project, which was expected to yield 80,000 barrels of oil per day. Costs at a time of lingering market weakness and the lack of pipelines needed to move Canadian oil to the global market forced the company to reconsider its priorities. […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple