ICYMI: Nebraska Decision is a Major Setback for the Keystone XL Pipeline

Lincoln, NE -- The Nebraska Public Service Commission’s (PSC) decision today on the route permit for the controversial Keystone XL tar sands pipeline is a serious setback for TransCanada, the company behind the proposed project. The PSC rejected TransCanada’s preferred route, instead approving a different path that the company has said would be unworkable.

TransCanada seems to recognize that it will be a bumpy road ahead for Keystone XL, evidenced by their press release in response to the decision, a terse, one-sentence statement saying the company will conduct a review of the PSC’s decision and determine their next steps.

TransCanada faces a number of obstacles if it hopes to build Keystone XL, including:

• The route the PSC approved was not TransCanada’s preferred route, and the company will now need easements from dozens more landowners in Nebraska.

• TransCanada does not have federal approval for this new route, and the State Department may need to conduct a new environmental review.

• Though TransCanada has claimed they have adequate interest in the project to build, they still do not have any firm commitments from shippers. Oil prices are currently well below the threshold for tar sands to be competitive, and oil industry analysts have long questioned whether there is any need for the pipeline.  

• Pressure is mounting on banks like Wells Fargo and Chase to pull financing from TransCanada, and today’s decision is further proof that investing in tar sands is a bad investment.

• The powerful coalition of environmental groups, local landowners, and Tribes that have fought this pipeline for years are not giving up, and TransCanada will likely face additional legal hurdles, as well as widespread public opposition.

Nebraskans, joined by millions of people across the country, have held off construction of this pipeline for more than seven years. Today’s decision is just one more step towards the inevitable end for Keystone XL.