Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Thursday morning that the Trans Mountain pipeline is in the national interest and that the federal government will make sure the expanded pipeline to the West Coast gets built.
The comments came by way of radio interviews on CBC’s Edmonton AM and 630 CHED’s Ryan Jespersen show ahead of his visit to Edmonton.
“It’s important to get our oil resources to markets other than the United States for the Alberta economy, for the Canadian economy to continue to grow and we need to do that safely,” Trudeau said on 630 CHED.
He went on to say that the Kinder Morgan pipeline is not a danger to the B.C. coast. This comes after British Columbia’s provincial government made moves to stall the $7.4-billion project and restrict bitumen shipments.
“That pipeline is going to get built. We will stand by our decision,” Trudeau resolved.
While not scheduled to meet with the Prime Minister, Premier Rachel Notley held an emergency cabinet meeting Wednesday to discuss next steps after the B.C. government proposed the restriction on bitumen shipment increases. She is expected to provide an update to media Thursday afternoon.
Also while in Edmonton, Trudeau met with Edmonton Mayor Don Iveson, who said “The prime minister understands that for Albertans and Canadians to get full value for our products, we need tidewater access, and our investors — who have been very patient in the process — need certainty to move ahead.”
“I thanked him on behalf of Edmontonians for his strong statements and commitment to getting the pipeline built.”
