Regulator seeks opinions on Trans Mountain pipeline process resumption

The National Energy Board has issued a certificate for the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion after it was approved by Ottawa last week, but is seeking input from affected parties and the public on its resumption of regulatory processes.

The federal regulator says it will accept public comments online or via fax or mail until July 5, and has set a deadline for initial company comment of next Friday, with reply comments due on July 9.

It is proposing to continue processes that were underway and to rely on decisions and orders issued before the Federal Court of Appeal struck down federal approval of the project last August, "unless relevant circumstances have materially changed.''

Ian Anderson, CEO of the Crown corporation building the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion, said shovels could be in the ground by September and oil could be flowing in new segments of the pipeline between Edmonton and the West Coast by mid-2022.

But that timeline depends on the NEB being able to reinstate the record from the previous regulatory proceedings so that the project can be brought back to the same state of construction readiness as last summer, he said, a process he expected to take some weeks.

The NEB says it wants to provide clarity on next steps for the project as efficiently as possible.

"Following the comment period, the NEB will decide how the regulatory processes will resume. Until that decision is made, Trans Mountain cannot rely on previously issued decisions and orders to start or resume project construction,'' it said in a statement.