The benefits of Energy East will be felt in Quebec (here at Ezeflow in Granby) and across the rest of the country
Today, TransCanada announced it will be amending the Energy East application that is currently before the National Energy Board (NEB) to remove a port in Quebec from the scope of the project that will transport Western Canadian oil to Quebec and New Brunswick. (Click here for the news release).
This decision was made after extensive dialogue with local communities as well as key stakeholders and customers, and it reflects our corporate philosophy of doing the right thing.
Needed pipeline infrastructure
We believe today, more than ever, that Energy East is a vital infrastructure project that will:
- Safely deliver the oil that millions of Canadians rely on each day
- Supply refineries in Quebec and New Brunswick – currently dependent on costlier foreign oil imports – with a more secure supply of Canadian oil
- Put the equivalent of 14,000 men and women to work across all provinces along the pipeline’s route
“Pipelines remain the safest, and least GHG-intensive way of transporting crude oil to market,” said Russ Girling, TransCanada’s president and chief executive officer. “By approving and building the Energy East Pipeline we will create the capacity to displace the equivalent of 1,570 rail cars of crude oil per day to Eastern Canada.”
Balancing environmental sustainability and prosperity
We know we can deliver this critical project for our country in a way that balances environmental sustainability and prosperity.
We can, and we will, maintain our commitment to the safe and responsible development of this pipeline while maximizing its clear economic benefits for Canadians.
According to a Conference Board of Canada study published late last year, the Energy East project is expected to support around 14,000 direct and indirect full-time jobs annually across our country during development and construction.
These benefits have already started to materialize. We’ve hired engineers, environmental experts, land surveyors, and many more specialists to help us develop this 4,500-kilometre project.
Benefits for Quebec…
In Quebec alone:
- TransCanada has already committed more than $100 million to over 250 local businesses over the last three years
- We will spend approximately $100 million each year in power purchases, municipal taxes and operating and maintenance costs, totaling several billion dollars over the life of the project
We will submit an update to the Conference Board of Canada report in a filing amendment with the NEB scheduled in late 2015. The revised report is expected to confirm strong benefits, even with the removal of a Quebec port, based on the expectation that our capital spending in the province will remain largely unchanged.
… and elsewhere in Canada
The benefits of Energy East are real and they will spread across the country, with more than 4,000 jobs supported in Ontario annually during development and construction. This includes 250 jobs previously announced for GE in Peterborough to build electric motors for the pump stations that will propel the oil inside the pipeline.
Energy East will support another 3,000 jobs in the Prairies and more than 2,300 jobs in New Brunswick each year during development and construction, in addition to hundreds of millions of dollars in tax revenues that will help local communities invest in public infrastructure like roads and schools.
Getting our resources to market is a priority and we know the success of Energy East will depend on keeping our word on safety and the environment.
Keeping our word on safety and the environment
These are some of the steps we will take to ensure Energy East is safe:
- Utilizing robotically-assisted welding techniques, top quality steel and fusion bonded epoxy to ensure the integrity of the pipeline and protect it from corrosion
- Using thicker walled pipe for water crossings and other sensitive areas;
- Installing thousands of sensors along the pipeline that send satellite data every five seconds to our Oil Control Centre where highly-trained specialists monitor the pipeline 24/7
- Inspecting the pipeline regularly with high-tech tools, airplane and helicopter patrols and workers on the ground
- Developing emergency response plans in collaboration with local first responders all along the pipeline route to ensure, in the highly-unlikely event of an incident, that we are able to act quickly to minimize any potential impact to people and the environment
We have demonstrated for more than 60 years that TransCanada has the expertise and commitment to build safe and reliable pipelines to better serve Canadians. This commitment is unwavering. Energy East will be the safest way of transporting Canadian crude oil to where it is needed – Quebec and New Brunswick.
