While all eyes are on the Enbridge Northern Gateway project, Kinder Morgan’s plans to double its shipments of oil sands bitumen out of Vancouver continue to progress.
The company announced last week that its open season had garnered enough commitments from potential users of the line to “support moving forward with the proposed Trans Mountain pipeline system expansion.”
In a release the company added, “The expansion open season, held between Oct. 20, 2011, and Feb. 16, 2012, received strong binding commercial support from a diverse group of customers.”
Ian Anderson, president of Kinder Morgan Canada said that support now allowed the company to complete initial project design and planning.
“We are looking forward to engaging in dialogue with First Nations, interested stakeholders and communities along the pipeline,” he said, adding, “The final decision on the proposed project will be known by the end of the first quarter of this year.”
The expansion plan sees 600,000 barrels per day (bpd) flowing from Alberta to its terminal in Burnaby. Kinder Morgan anticipates the expansion will cost about $3.8 billion.