After 12 years, the Trans Mountain Pipeline Expansion (TMX) is finally complete. For readers who have been behind the project, thank you for your positive contributions to the public discussion, or the pipeline may never have crossed the finish line!
With shipments of oil already contracted to buyers in China, India, and California, building the TMX was clearly the right choice. California imports most of its oil from Saudi Arabia and Iraq; displacing such foreign suppliers on global markets with responsibly– produced Canadian energy is a win whichever way you put it.
But apart from the obvious energy security and human rights implications, TMX stands to bring about significant economic benefits for Canadians and First Nations for years to come.
Trevor Tombe, a prominent economist, has highlighted the positive impact the project will have in Canada, including estimated earnings of up to $38 billion over the next two decades and lower-cost access to markets abroad for Canadian oil producers, raising prices per barrel here at home.
According to Tombe, TMX’s economic benefits will also extend to producers that don’t ship through the new pipeline expansion. The Canada Energy Regulator (CER) has said that having sufficient pipeline capacity allows Canadian oil sands producers to fetch an additional $9 per barrel for their product.
Considering that Canada was producing more than 4.8 million barrels per day of crude oil at the end of 2023 – a figure which is only set to grow this year – this quickly adds up to many millions of dollars per day in additional revenues for the Canadian economy, or billions of dollars over the year.
And let’s not forget about the significant economic impacts TMX had on various communities during its construction. This includes billions of dollars pumped into local businesses and service providers, donations to community initiatives, and benefit agreements with First Nations.
As of March 2023, TMX had signed agreements with 81 First Nations in B.C. and Alberta worth over $657 million in benefits and opportunities for their communities. During construction, more than 3,000 Indigenous peoples were hired to work on the pipeline expansion, and billions of dollars was spent on First-NationsFirst Nations-owned businesses and services – approximately $4.84 billion on 6,088 Indigenous contracts as of December 2022.
And if you followed along TMX’s milestones, you’ll know that it also stopped construction many times to preserve and protect wildlife and their habitats. Hummingbirds, snakes, badgers, eagles, and snails were just a few of the species protected under the project’s rigorous environmental mitigation techniques. Anyone who says Canada isn’t an environmental leader is spreading falsehoods.
TMX stands as a shining example of how to do pipeline construction right. From Indigenous involvement to environmental protections to local sourcing and contracting to helping Canadians maximize the value of our natural resources, the project is a win across the board.
If Canadians can learn anything from TMX, it’s that the responsible development of our natural resources underpins our economy and prosperity at large, and that we should be eager to get more major projects like it up and running.
Cody Battershill is a Calgary realtor and founder / spokesperson for CanadaAction.ca, a volunteer-initiated group that supports Canadian energy development and the environmental, social and economic benefits that come with it.
