WCOP Project Faces Challenges Amidst Economic Reconciliation Hopes

A proposed West Coast Oil Pipeline (WCOP) project aims to run from Bruderheim, Alberta to Delta, B.C., largely twinning an existing route. Trans Mountain Corporation and Pembina Pipeline have come forward as proponents of the project.

The Pathways Project has reached an agreement with Alberta and the Oil Sands Alliance, packaging it together with a one-million-barrel-a-day increase in oil sands production. This is not an argument for the best pipeline choices, but rather recognizing that sometimes you must work with what's given.

Social licence for WCOP faces challenges, particularly in B.C., where trust has been eroded by the impacts of DRIPA legislation. However, there are recent positive signs, and economic reconciliation may carry on through regulatory and consultation work ahead.