The threat of a trade war between Canada and the United States has put a long-dead pipeline project back in the political spotlight — with at least one former opponent now voicing support for the idea of shipping more oil through B.C.
Speaking Tuesday, Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs president Grand Chief Stewart Phillip said he is now ready to consider supporting the Northern Gateway pipeline — a proposed project that would send Alberta bitumen to B.C.’s North Coast, near Kitimat, for export overseas.
The project was effectively killed in 2016 when the federal government, under a freshly elected Justin Trudeau, announced a moratorium on crude oil tanker traffic off British Columbia’s North Coast in order to protect the coastal environment, although it had already been placed on the back burner at the time.
The pipeline had previously been approved by Stephen Harper’s Conservatives, but the approval was reversed when the Federal Court found Ottawa had not adequately consulted Indigenous people along the project’s 1,177-kilometre route — prompting celebrations among those who had fought the project.
Grand Chief Stewart Phillip of the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs says he has rethought his opposition to a proposed pipeline that would ship bitumen to B.C.’s North Coast, arguing it is necessary for Canada to take on the project to counter threats from U.S. President Donald Trump.
But “that was a different time,” Phillip told a gathering of B.C.’s provincial cabinet and First Nations leaders in Vancouver.
“We’re staring into the abyss of uncertainty” due to the combination of climate change and the “American threat” posed by U.S. President Donald Trump, he said.
“I would suggest that if we don’t build that kind of infrastructure, Trump will. And there will not be any consideration for the environment or the rule of law or anything along those lines. I think that we can do better.”
Smith, Poilievre bring pipeline back into conversation
His support for the idea follows days of Alberta Premier Danielle Smith arguing that Canada needs to start constructing domestic pipelines in response to the threat of tariffs and a trade war from U.S. President Donald Trump.
Following his inauguration, Trump told supporters that he wants a 25 per cent tariff on Canadian goods coming into the United States by Feb. 1.
Alberta politicians and industry leaders are particularly concerned about what that could mean for their economy, as energy exports from the province are highly reliant on the United States buying up their product.
Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, Premier Danielle Smith said while she hopes to avoid a trade war, the threats from Trump should also be an imperative to put projects like Northern Gateway and the Energy East pipeline back on the agenda.
With U.S. President Donald Trump seemingly holding off on imposing 25 per cent tariffs on Canadian goods, Alberta Premier Danielle Smith spoke to The National’s Adrienne Arsenault about how tariffs could be avoided in the future and America’s reliance on Alberta oil.
“We want to stop being so reliant on a single trading partner,” she said. “We need to take down internal trade barriers between Canadian provinces, start looking at how we can do major projects… so we can diversify our customer base around the world.”
Federal Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre has also mentioned the pipeline in recent days while attacking federal Liberal leadership candidate Mark Carney, arguing he opposed it and other projects that would have helped Canada economically.
Enbridge says it has ‘no plans’ to revive project
Regardless of political support, the company originally behind Northern Gateway says it has “no plans” to revive it.
“There’s lots of capacity there that is efficient and less disruptive to communities and the environment,” said spokesperson Jesse Semko in an email to CBC News.
“Our current effort is focused on leveraging our pipeline in the ground and our existing rights of way.”
Those remarks echo those made in 2019, when the company’s then-CEO, Al Monaco, poured cold water on the idea that the pipeline could be revived.
“I think it’s probably sailed,” he told reporters at the time, noting that so much time had passed since the project was first approved that they would likely be starting at square one and unable to find enough investor support to make it viable.
Instead, he said, the company would be focused on smaller projects that were easier to fund and develop.
Federal Energy Minister Jonathan Wilkinson also appeared dismissive of the proposal when questioned by reporters outside of cabinet meetings Tuesday.
“President Trump will be in power for four years, building a pipeline takes a lot longer than that,” he said. “So anyone who tells you that that’s a short-term answer to diversifying energy systems doesn’t really understand what they’re talking about.”
B.C. says plan would still need Indigenous support.
Speaking alongside Chief Phillip, B.C. Premier David Eby said he agreed on the need for economic diversification while also emphasizing the importance of those projects not moving ahead without consulting the Indigenous and local communities they would affect.
Terry Teegee, the regional chief of the B.C. Assembly of First Nations, echoed the sentiment, noting there is often a diversity of opinions among Indigenous people when it comes to resource projects and saying that what is key is having an approval process in place that takes those differences into account.
“If we don’t, we end up in court,” he said.
Phillip, Teegee, and First Nations Summit Chief Cheryl Casimer said that, to their knowledge, no one has yet approached local First Nations about reviving the Northern Gateway project.
