Donald Trump Suggests Reviving Keystone XL Pipeline

President Donald Trump suggested reviving the Keystone XL oil pipeline as a potential concession in trade negotiations with Canada to prevent the imposition of new tariffs. Trump expressed a desire to awaken the project "from the grave," referencing the pipeline's cancellation in 2021.

While the president focused on the original project, pipeline developers are pursuing a different strategy to move heavy Canadian crude to Gulf Coast refineries. South Bow, a spin-off of TC Energy, is planning a trio of pipelines that would serve the same purpose as Keystone XL without using its controversial name. This alternative plan includes the Prairie Connector pipeline from Alberta to the U.S. border and an expansion of the Bridger Pipeline through Montana.

To support this alternative route, Trump issued a border crossing permit in Montana in April. However, the project faces potential regulatory and legal challenges in Montana similar to those that stalled the original Keystone XL project. South Bow leadership indicated that the current North American policy environment is constructive for growing production and adding egress.