B.C. Premier David Eby has refrained from outright rejecting Alberta Premier Danielle Smith’s proposal to revive the Northern Gateway pipeline. At the Western Premiers’ Conference in Yellowknife, Eby acknowledged Smith’s goal of getting Alberta’s heavy oil to the coast but highlighted his own priorities of decarbonizing and driving B.C.’s economy forward.
Eby’s comments revealed a lack of strong opposition to the revival of Northern Gateway, although he did steer the conversation toward B.C.’s goals of reducing carbon emissions. He suggested that if Smith were to convince the federal government or a private company to revive the project, B.C. would address the matter when the time comes.
Smith has called for Northern Gateway’s revival to help facilitate oil exports to Asia through B.C.’s northern coastline, but the project was canceled in 2016 due to environmental concerns, including a tanker ban. Eby, however, expressed reluctance to open the northern coastline to tanker traffic, noting that the Trans Mountain Pipeline expansion is running below capacity. Smith, on the other hand, sees the Port of Prince Rupert as a crucial hub for Canadian exports.
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