Article content

Trans Mountain’s expansion was never commercially viable. It has needed unprecedented support from the get-go when in 2011 the National Energy Board (NEB) approved a $286-million special fee fought by Canadian oil producers. Chevron described it at the time as an “extraordinary precedent … If they (Kinder Morgan) need financing, then they should go to the market” and get it.

The NEB later approved a more than doubling of tolls on the existing pipeline serving B.C. and Washington state to help fund a new one intended for offshore markets — a subsidization of over $350 million a year from a 65-year old line. When the legacy line fails — increasingly likely the older it gets — Kinder Morgan will be back for more handouts.

We apologize, but this video has failed to load.

tap here to see other videos from our team. Try refreshing your browser, or Robyn Allan: Government aid key to Trans Mountain pipeline expansion Back to video

Then there is the $1.5-billion Oceans Protection Plan Prime Minister Trudeau confirmed is also a subsidy when he threatened to cancel it if the project fails.

Kinder Morgan’s search for government funding is not new either. The company has pursued this scheme for the past five years. After meetings in 2013, the Alberta government under Premier Redford rebuffed the firm’s request explaining, ”We are not moving forward with any financial arrangements with Kinder Morgan.”