The Trump administration has given permission to the TRP Keystone XL pipeline being developed by Top Lithium Stocks TransCanada Corporation (USA) (NYSE:TRP) to continue construction works. After receiving the go ahead from the President, the pipeline project, which is valued at $8 billion, is now closer to its completion.
The 1,700-mile pipeline which runs from Canada up to the Texas Gulf Coast, has been a contentious issue for the energy industry advocates and environmental lobby groups. The decision is one of the most remarkable steps taken by the current administration in a move to prioritize economic development over environmental concerns.
The Southern part of the Keystone Pipeline System which runs from Cushing, OK up to southern Texas was completed in 2014. This is the portion that faced a lot of objection and will now cross the U.S-Canada border.
President Obama rejected an application by TransCanada to build the Keystone XL pipeline on ground that it would weaken the U.S’s integrity in the international climate negotiations that were expected later that n France. Obama supported the argument by environmental lobby groups that the project would encourage use of carbon-heavy tar sands oil hence increasing the levels of global warming.
Additionally, President Obama claimed that the oil produced would not be used in the U.S market despite being refined in American refineries as it would be exported. TransCanada had however claimed that Keystone would not remain an export pipeline.
In 2016, the oil company and top energy stocks based in Houston appealed the decision by the former President claiming he acted beyond his powers provided under the U.S Constitution. TransCanada also said it would file a claim under Chapter 11 of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) arguing that the denial was unjustified. The company was fighting to recover over $15 billion in damages and costs through the NAFTA claim.
However, Trump recently signed an executive order giving green light to the Keystone XL and Dakota Access oil pipelines. The project, according to Trump, increases the country’s national interests by cutting on costs and creating employments opportunities.
