Ivanhoe’s Kipushi zinc mine in the DRC officially reopens
The restart marked exactly a century since the mine first went into production.
The Joint Review Panel’s 199 requirements for the Northern Gateway pipeline could have a negative impact on B.C.’s other proposed pipeline – the Trans Mountain – if they become a template for all oil pipelines, Kinder Morgan (NYSE:KMI) is warning.
In comments filed with the Joint Review Panel reviewing the Enbridge Inc. (TSX:ENB) Northern Gateway pipeline plan, Kinder Morgan warned that the restrictions being recommend could also place major regulatory hurdles in front of Kinder Morgan’s plan to twin the Trans Mountain pipeline, which runs from Northern Alberta to Burnaby.
“We believe a number of the proposed conditions may have a material impact on pipeline and infrastructure development in Canada,” said Kinder Morgan lawyer Shawn Denstedt.
The panel would require Enbridge to file plans with the National Energy Board on project elements such as a marine terminal three years in advance of going into operation. It would also require Enbridge to use three-layer composite coating or high-performance composite coating for the entire pipeline.
“If broadly applied to the industry, such conditions may limit the ability of pipeline companies to obtain competitive quotes because there are few sources of the required materials or services,” Denstedt writes.
“The effect of conditions that require the use of a particular material or service may be to grant commercial benefits to certain suppliers through the regulatory process beyond the requirements of existing codes.”
Final oral arguments before the Northern Gateway joint review panel began Monday in Terrace.
Kinder Morgan plans to file a regulatory application later this year for its $5.4 billion Trans Mountain pipeline twinning project.
By Nelson Bennett and Elsie Ross, Canadian Oil Register
