According to Jim Prentice, the Alberta Premier, a Keystone XL pipeline decision appears to be close and the project should be in the final chapters, in spite of the fact that a presidential vet has been promised by US President Barack Obama if the Congress and House both allow the project to move forward. Prentice was in Washington DC on Monday and he met with White House representatives while he was there. The visit covered 4 days and occurred at a time when a newly elected Republican Congress is determined to push the pipeline through while President Obama is determined to stop it. A week ago there was passage of a bipartisan bill that approved the $8 billion pipeline project, but the votes were not enough to override a presidential veto if it comes down to this.

When asked about the Keystone XL pipeline project and a possible presidential veto during a press conference Prentice said “I’m not here to insert myself in the political dynamic that’s taking place between the president and the U.S. Congress. I’m just here to make sure that the facts are straight. I would say, based on the sense that I’ve had talking to people and the comments that were made by the Secretary of State (John) Kerry in Boston yesterday, there is a sense that we’re in the closing chapter of this whole discussion around the Keystone pipeline, but I cannot tell you whether that translates into days or weeks.” If the pipeline is vetoed successfully then Republicans will probably just attach it to another omnibus bill in the spring.