Trans Mountain pipeline
The Trans Mountain Pipeline System, or simply the Trans Mountain Pipeline (TMPL), is a multiple product pipeline system that carries crude and refined products from Edmonton, Alberta, to the coast of British Columbia, Canada.
| Trans Mountain Pipeline (TMPL) | |
|---|---|
| Location | |
| Country | Canada |
| Province | Alberta and British Columbia |
| From | Edmonton, Alberta |
| To | Burnaby, British Columbia |
| General information | |
| Type | Multiple product pipelines: crude oil, refined petroleum products such as jet fuel, gasoline, diesel |
| Status | Operational - twinning under construction |
| Owner | Trans Mountain Corporation (TMC) (Canada Development Investment Corporation) |
| Commissioned | 1951 |
| Technical information | |
| Length | 1,150 km (710 mi) |
| Diameter | 610 mm (24 in) |
The corporation was created in 1951, construction began in 1952, and operations commenced in 1953. It is the only pipeline to run between these two areas.
The construction of a second pipeline between Hinton, Alberta, and Hargreaves, British Columbia, running adjacent to the existing line, was completed in 2008.
In 2013, a project to twin the existing Trans Mountain pipeline—the Trans Mountain Expansion Project—was proposed to the Canadian National Energy Board. The project was 98% complete, as of 23 January 2024. The expansion, which runs roughly parallel to the existing pipeline, will increase capacity from 300,000 barrels per day (48,000 m3/d) to 890,000 barrels per day (141,000 m3/d).
Since it was first proposed in 2013, this Trans Mountain Expansion Project has attracted controversy due to its potential environmental impact, having faced legal challenges, as well as protests from environmentalists and some First Nations groups. A Supreme Court decision on July 2, 2020, that rejected the appeals made by First Nations and environmental groups, "[brought] an end to the years-long legal challenge".
On August 31, 2018, the Government of Canada purchased the pipeline for $4.5 billion from Kinder Morgan through the creation of the Trans Mountain Corporation (TMC), in order to "keep the project alive". TMC is a Crown corporation, a subsidiary of the Canada Development Investment Corporation (CDEV). Until the purchase by CDEV, the Trans Mountain Pipeline was owned by the Houston, Texas-based pipeline operator's Canadian division.