State Department rejects TransCanada request for Keystone delay

WASHINGTON – The Obama administration said Wednesday it is continuing a review of the proposed Keystone XL oil pipeline, despite a request by the project’s developer to suspend the review.

If granted, a delay could have put off a decision on the high-profile project until the next U.S. president takes office in 2017. President Barack Obama has yet to say whether he would approve or reject the pipeline, but the Democrats running for president have all said they oppose it while Republican candidates support it.

State Department spokesman John Kirby said the department advised TransCanada on Wednesday of its decision to continue the review. The State Department has jurisdiction over the pipeline because it crosses a U.S. border.

Kirby said there was no legal requirement for officials to suspend the review, adding that “a lot of interagency work” has gone into the evaluation so far. Secretary of State John Kerry “believes that it’s most appropriate to keep the process in place,” Kirby said.

Calgary-based TransCanada asked the U.S. on Monday to delay consideration of the Alberta-to-Texas pipeline, the latest wrinkle in a seven-year quest for the project.

TransCanada said it respects the U.S. decision and will continue its efforts to demonstrate that the long-delayed pipeline – a flashpoint in the global debate over climate change – is in the U.S. national interest.

The 1,179-mile pipeline would run from Canada through Montana, South Dakota and Nebraska, where it would connect with existing pipelines to carry more than 800,000 barrels of crude oil a day from tar sands in western Canada to refineries along the U.S. Gulf Coast.

Opponents say the project requires huge amounts of energy and water and increases greenhouse gas emissions blamed for global warming. They also warn that pipeline leaks could potentially pollute underground aquifers that are a critical source of water for farmers in the Great Plains.

Supporters say the project will create jobs and reduce U.S. reliance on Middle Eastern oil. They argue that pipelines are a safer method of transporting oil than trains, pointing to recent derailments on both sides of the border, including a 2013 disaster in Canada that killed 47 people.