On November 29, 2016, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau signed off on two major pipeline expansions, namely Kinder Morgan’s Trans Mountain pipeline and Enbridge’s Line 3, which are expected to pump nearly 1.1 million additional barrels of oil per day from Alberta’s oilsands to global markets.

The Liberals also decided to permanently shelve the Northern Gateway pipeline across northwestern British Columbia. However, the door remains open to more pipeline approvals, on a case-by-case basis. Trudeau said that the decision to move forward with Trans Mountain and Line 3 “is in the best interests of Canada and Canadians”. The proposed replacement of Enbridge’s Line 3 would effectively double its current working capacity, while the Trans Mountain expansion project will nearly triple the capacity of an existing pipeline to 890,000 bpd.