Northern Gateway pipeline needs $1b in liability coverage: NEB

From Business in Vancouver

The $6 billion Northern Gateway pipeline could end up costing Enbridge Inc. (TSX:ENB) $7 billion, if all 199 recommendations being made by the National Energy Board are approved unchanged.

The Joint Review Panel (National Energy Board and Environment Canada) Friday issued a set of 199 conditions that it says should be met before the pipeline, which would carry bitumen from Alberta oil sands to Kitimat.

Among those recommendations is $950 million liability contingencies to pay for cleanup, remediation and damages in the event of an oil spill.

“For the NEB, these regulations are part of a commitment to continual improvement in terms of safety and environmental outcomes,” sais NEB chairman Gaétan Caron.

“The board believes that with proper management, pipeline incidents are preventable. It is on that critical foundation that we have developed a proactive approach that targets the prevention of incidents before they occur.”

The recommendations are not final, an Enbridge spokesman told Business in Vancouver.

“These are not actual conditions, they are only potential conditions,” he said. “They may or may not form part of the final decision.”

The company, and all other participants in the Joint Review Panel process, including the provincial government, now will be asked to respond to the 199 conditions. Oral arguments will begin June 18.

Some of the other conditions include:

• proof that it will meet its commitment that 15% of jobs will go to First Nations, as well as procurement and contracting agreements with First Nations;
• measures to address skills gaps;
• environmental effects monitoring; and
• proof it has financial commitments from shippers.

By Nelson Bennett