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TransCanada Corp. is hoping to start construction by June on its decade-old Keystone XL oil pipeline project, even as the U.S. government shutdown threatens to delay a key legal proceeding.

In a court filing on Monday, the Calgary-based pipeline company said its current schedule requires pre-construction activities including setting up pipe yards and work camps to resume by February. That would allow full work to begin by June and be completed in late 2020, with the pipeline entering service in early 2021.

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TransCanada reiterated that a yearlong delay would cost the company US$949 million in lost profits and delay the hiring of about 6,600 workers. The company would also face higher construction costs as competition for crews increases in 2020, TransCanada said in a letter filed in U.S. District Court in Montana.