The $13 billion Keystone project is an entire network of pipelines connecting the key sources of supply from Alberta, Canada, in North end, and Gulf of Mexico, USA, in South end, to the main storage, trading and refining locations of Cushing, Oklahoma, USA, of Port Arthur, Texas, USA, and of Wood River & Patoka, USA.
TransCanada ran the first phase into operations, from Hardisty, Alberta, Canada, to Steele City, Nebraska, USA, and Wood River & Patoka, Illinois, USA in 2010.
In a second phase, TransCanada connected Steele City, Nebraska, to Cushing, Oklahoma, in 2011.
Now, the so called Keystone Gulf Costs Expansion or Keystone XLproject, will cost $7.6 billion to build 2.676 km oil pipeline in two phases:
- Phase III will connect Cushing, Oklahoma, to a delivery point near existing terminals in Nederland, Texas to serve the Port Arthur, Texas marketplace. This Phase III will involve the construction of approximately 700 km of new pipeline in Oklahoma and Texas.
- Phase IV will link Hardisty, Alberta, Canada, again to Steele City, Nebraska, directly through the Saskatchewan in Canada and Montana, South Dakota and Nebraska in USA. This Phase IV will involve the construction of approximately 526 km of new pipeline in Canada and approximately 1,371 km in USA.
Then this expansion will require new facilities:
- At the Keystone Hardisty Terminal
- Three operational storage tanks
- An initiating pump station
- A interconnections with existing pipeline systems
- Along the pipeline, the construction of an additional
- 8 pump stations in Canada
- 30 pump stations in the United States.
Coming across the US-Canada border the Keystone XL pipeline is submitted to the US Department of State approval. But since the three years environmental review has now been completed and since a new route across Nebraska has been defined to avoid the ecologically sensitive Sandhills region, the cross border permit is expected to be delivered soon in 2012.
In respect with the ongoing regulatory approvals, the Keystone XL pipeline is expected to come on stream by the end of 2013.
