Canada Fast-Tracks Pacific Oil Pipeline Amid Alberta Separatist Tensions

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney has fast-tracked the Pacific Link pipeline project to reduce Canada's dependence on the United States and address separatist sentiment in Alberta.

The proposed $25 billion to $31 billion pipeline will transport an additional 1 million barrels a day of oil from Bruderheim, northeast of Edmonton, Alberta, to a deepwater port near Delta, British Columbia.

The project's goal is to reduce Canada's reliance on the US by allowing exports to growing markets in Asia. Currently, 90% of Alberta's oil goes to the US, and Carney has set a target of doubling Canada's non-US exports over the next decade.

The pipeline faces significant opposition from Indigenous communities and environmental groups, but Carney says construction will only proceed if Pathways, a carbon-capture project, is completed. The government has committed to offering Indigenous communities at least 10% ownership in the pipeline.