Federal officials say construction of the $7.4 billion pipeline is likely to begin in 2019



Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his cabinet have again approved the Trans Mountain expansion project, a crucial next step for the much-delayed pipeline project designed to carry nearly a million barrels of oil from Alberta's oilpatch to the B.C. coast each day.

The cabinet has affirmed the National Energy Board's conclusion that, while the pipeline has the potential to damage the environment and marine life, it's in the national interest and could contribute tens of billions of dollars to government coffers and create and sustain thousands of jobs.

Beyond approving the project, Trudeau also committed to directing every single dollar the federal government earns from the pipeline — which, when it's built, is estimated to be some $500 million a year in federal corporate tax revenue alone — to investments in unspecified clean energy projects.

Sale proceeds to go to green projects
Any proceeds from the eventual sale of the pipeline will also be earmarked for projects that would help with the transition away from fossil fuels to cleaner sources of energy.

"We need to create wealth today so we can invest in the future. We need resources to invest in Canadians so they can take advantage of the opportunities generated by a rapidly changing economy, here at home and around the world," Trudeau said.

Trudeau said building the project, which will help deliver Canadian oil to tidewater for shipment to lucrative markets in Asia, will ensure Canada is not dependent on selling its natural resources to one customer — the United States.

https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/tas...sion-1.5180269