Keystone pipeline approval, recent election in the USA

With the results of the recent election in the USA there is new hope for the Canadian government that there will be a Keystone pipeline approval announced soon. According to Joe Oliver, the Finance Minister, he has hope that the Republicans who took control of the United States Senate will give approval for the Keystone XL project which has been stalled by the Democratic Majority in the Senate until now and the current presidential administration. The US Ambassador to Canada, Gary Doer, expressed hope that the win by the Republicans will get the Keystone pipeline project back on track and help it move forward once again. Ever since the project was stalled the Republican lawmakers in the Senate and House of Representatives in the United States have tried to push the project forward by applying pressure to President Obama to issue a Keystone pipeline approval.

A Keystone pipeline approval because of the recent election in the USA would be a boon to Canada and the USA, and the Canadian government has long supported the project. It is a $5.4 billion project, allowing a TransCanada pipeline to be built which will connect Texas refineries to the Athabasca oilsands in Alberta. President Obama has continuously pushed back Keystone pipeline approval because he was pressured by environmentalists. Things have changed now that Republicans control both congressional chambers, and things will hopefully start to get done with the change in political parties. Republican lawmakers have already stated that the Keystone XL project is a priority once the new session of Congress begins in January.