TransCanada supersizes Keystone project
Pipelines International — December 2009
TransCanada is seeking regulatory approvals in Canada and the United States to construct and operate a 3,200km expansion of its 3,456km Keystone Pipeline, which would make it one of the largest oil delivery systems in North America.
In September 2009, Canada’s National Energy Board held a hearing to review the application for the Canadian portion of the Keystone Gulf Coast expansion – dubbed Keystone XL – with a decision expected in early 2010. Permits for the US portion of the expansion are expected by mid-2010. Construction of the Keystone expansion is expected to begin once TransCanada receives the necessary regulatory approvals.
The proposed Keystone XL Pipeline would increase the capacity of the original pipeline system from Western Canada to the US Gulf Coast by 500,000 barrels of oil per day. Once completed, the pipeline system would have the capacity to deliver 1.1 million barrels of oil per day.
The extension is proposed to originate in Alberta, Canada, and extend south to serve markets on the Gulf Coast, Texas.
The 36 inch diameter pipeline would begin in Hardisty, Alberta, and travel 527 km to Monchy, Saskatchewan, and then 1,360 km from Morgan, Montana, to Steele City, Nebraska, where it would link into the original 477 km Keystone Pipeline extension to Cushing, Oklahoma, scheduled for construction in 2010. From Cushing, Keystone XL will run to Houston and Port Arthur, Texas.
The total cost of the Keystone and Keystone XL project is expected to be approximately $US12 billion.
Meanwhile, the initial phase of TransCanada’s Keystone Pipeline is nearing completion with the pipelay works set to reach Patoka, Illinois, by the first quarter 2010.
At the time of writing, the first phase of the project was 90 per cent complete, with TransCanada on schedule to begin oil deliveries in the first quarter of 2010.
The Keystone Pipeline originates in Alberta, Canada, and extends 3,456 km to oil refineries in Wood River and a tank farm in Patoka, Illinois.
The first phase involves the construction of 2,592 km of pipe and the conversion of 864 km of natural gas pipeline to oil service. Converting the existing facilities in Canada began in 2008.
http://pipelinesinternational.com/news/transcanada_supersizes_keystone_p...
