Alberta Premier Danielle Smith says Kitimat is no longer under consideration as a potential destination for a future oil pipeline, despite recent discussions in the community about the possibility.
Smith made the comments at a press conference Thursday about Canada’s energy export capacity and growing demand from international markets, particularly in Asia.
She said concerns raised during the original Northern Gateway pipeline proposal continue to influence Alberta’s thinking regarding Kitimat.
“I heard the concerns about the original routing of Northern Gateway to Kitimat, and Kitimat is not on the table as one of the ports that we’re looking at,” Smith said.
“There’s just too many channels that have to be navigated, and the navigation is too complex. We’re looking instead for a deep-water port that allows us to get to open ocean without requiring a lot of additional marine navigation.”
Kitimat was previously proposed as the marine terminal for Northern Gateway, a project that sparked years of local debate around tanker traffic through the Douglas Channel, environmental risks and potential economic benefits before it was cancelled in 2016.
Smith said Alberta is now focused on identifying alternative export options as global demand for Canadian energy continues to grow, particularly in Asia.
“When we began with Trans Mountain, I think the expectation was that most of it would go to the United States,” she said.
“In fact, about 90 per cent is now going to Asia. When I’ve made trade visits and talked with delegates from Asia, they’ve been very clear with us, they say, ‘send us more.’ There is an open and robust market waiting for more Canadian energy.”
The comments are particularly notable locally, as Smith met in late November with representatives from the District of Kitimat and the Haisla Nation to discuss the concept of a future pipeline project.
That meeting sparked local interest and questions about whether Kitimat could once again be considered as a pipeline endpoint. Smith’s latest remarks appear to clarify that, at least from Alberta’s perspective, the community is no longer under consideration for that role.
Smith also pointed to the economic impact of the Trans Mountain pipeline, saying it has helped narrow the price differential for Canadian oil and increased government revenues through corporate and personal income taxes tied to higher production and employment.
With Trans Mountain now operating at capacity, Smith said she supports calls from B.C. Premier David Eby to consider expanding the pipeline, calling it a potential “pressure relief valve” for Alberta producers.
Smith added that Alberta is also factoring in marine response capacity and Indigenous participation in any future project, including job creation related to tug operations and the potential for Indigenous ownership stakes involving nations in both British Columbia and Alberta.
“We’re doing our work now to put the project together by June,” Smith said. “We’re hopeful the federal government can move swiftly on making a decision so we can get down to the technical details, and once that happens, I’m very confident there will be strong private-sector proponents willing to work with us to build it.”
