441-00120 (Natural resources and energy)

The Government thanks the petitioners for expressing their views about Canada’s purchase of the Trans Mountain Corporation (TMC) as well as views on TMC’s Trans Mountain Expansion Project (TMEP).

On June 18, 2019, the Government of Canada approved TMEP by directing the Canada Energy Regulator to issue a Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity and Environmental Assessment Decision Statement related to TMEP.

The environment and the economy go hand-in-hand. When we create prosperity today, we can invest in the clean jobs, technologies, and infrastructure of the future—and help Canadians benefit from opportunities presented by a rapidly changing economy.

The key to creating prosperity is finding new markets for our businesses to sell their products and services. Nowhere is the need to diversify greater than for our energy sector, where 99 per cent of our conventional resources are sold to one market—and often at large discounts. Canadians understand that we need to open up new international markets, in order to get a full and fair price, support workers and their families, and foster competitiveness.

The Government’s approval of TMEP was based on the confidence that:

• Strong environmental protections have been and continue to be put in place, and that the effects of TMEP can be mitigated through conditions and recommendations outlined by the National Energy Board, as well as measures including the historic $1.5 billion Oceans Protection Plan and the national climate plan.
• Consultations with Indigenous peoples involved meaningful, two-way dialogue, which fulfilled the legal duty to consult and helped identify new accommodation measures and conditions to appropriately address potential impacts on Indigenous rights and concerns expressed by Indigenous communities.

On February 18, 2022, TMC announced that its Board of Directors had approved a total cost estimate of $21.4 billion to bring TMEP into service by the end of 2023. With 50 per cent of the pipeline already built and the project significantly de-risked, the government will spend no additional public money on the project, and TMC will instead secure the funding necessary to complete the project with third-party financing, either in the public debt markets or with financial institutions.

The government has engaged both BMO Capital Markets and TD Securities to provide advice on financial aspects of the project. Their analyses confirms that public financing for the project is a feasible option that can be implemented promptly.  They have also confirmed that the project remains commercially viable. There remains strong interest from prospective purchasers in operational infrastructure assets like the Trans Mountain Expansion Project, underpinned as it is by 20-year shipper contracts.

TMEP as it stands today is very different from the project that Kinder Morgan proposed in 2017. It has been designed to a higher standard for environmental protection, undergone rigorous consultation with Indigenous groups and will support union jobs in B.C. and Alberta. These enhancements have improved TMEP, ensured that construction proceeds in the right way, and that it will support the Canadian economy today and into the future.

The project is also creating economic benefits for many Indigenous communities through contracting, financial compensation, and employment and training opportunities. To date, TMC has signed 69 agreements with 75 Indigenous communities worth over $580 million, and the project will generate over $2.7 billion in Indigenous-based contract awards. The government has also been engaging affected Indigenous communities on further economic participation in Trans Mountain for more than two years, and will continue to move forward on that objective. 

By moving forward with TMEP, the Government is creating jobs, diversifying markets, accelerating Canada’s clean energy transition, and opening up new avenues for Indigenous economic prosperity.