Energy East pipeline execs meet in Winnipeg today

Pipeline executives from TransCanada and Enbridge are set to meet with treaty chiefs today in Winnipeg. The Southern Chiefs Organisation invited chiefs from Manitoba, Saskatchewan and northwestern Ontario to the closed-door meeting so the two pipeline giants can outline plans for the construction of the CAN$12 billion Energy East pipeline to the Maritimes.

The meeting is also expected to draw protests involving critics from an indigenous rights group outside the downtown Delta Winnipeg.

The private meeting, meanwhile, was jointly organised by TransCanada and the Manitoba First Nations consulting firm Green Water.

Grand Chief Terry Nelson said he hopes the meeting gives chiefs an opportunity to learn what the pipeline giants have in mind. "It's mostly about ensuring chiefs are better informed and that they know the intent of the pipeline project," Nelson said.

Both sides are currently preparing for consultations on the pipeline's route across traditional treaty lands.

Alberta Premier Jim Prentice has been meeting with provincial premiers seeking their support and approval for the Energy East plan.

TransCanada wants to use a repurposed gas pipeline to carry crude oil two-thirds of the way across Canada and build an extension that would lead to Saint John, New Brunswick.

Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne called it a project “of national importance ... and a nation-building exercise.”

The project must also be approved by the National Energy Board.

Edited from various sources by Elizabeth Corner

Winnipeg Free Press, The Desert Sun

Read the article online at: https://www.worldpipelines.com/project-news/08122014/energy-east-pipeline-execs-meet-in-winnipeg-today/