NPRA urges US approval of Keystone XL pipeline
The National Petrochemical & Refiners Association (NPRA) sent a letter to the US State Department urging approval of the Keystone XL pipeline, which would bring oil from Western Canada to US refineries.
State Department approval is needed before the pipeline can be built because the pipeline begins outside the US.
“NPRA strongly supports any measure that would get the construction of the Keystone XL pipeline started,” NPRA President Charles T. Drevna wrote in the letter.
“The importance of approving the construction of the Keystone XL pipeline is critical for maintaining and strengthening America’s energy security and stimulating the American economy,” Drevna said.
Other arguments from Drevna in the five-page letter included:
• “Completion of the Keystone XL pipeline can make an important contribution to lowering oil costs by increasing the supply of crude oil throughout North America. Gasoline prices are determined by a number of supply and demand fundamentals, but over the long term, the primary factor is the cost of crude oil. Increased supplies of Canadian crude oil to the US will put downward pressure on crude oil prices and have a beneficial impact throughout the entire supply chain.”
• “Completion of the Keystone XL pipeline will create jobs and benefit communities through increased business activity and tax revenues. ... The Canadian Energy Research Institute estimates that if the Keystone XL pipeline is built, as many as 465,000 Americans could be working in jobs supported by Canadian oil sands investments in the United States by 2035. ... According to TransCanada, once the pipeline is operational, the states along the pipeline route are expected to receive an additional $5.2 billion in property taxes during the estimated operating life of the pipeline.”
• “It is critical that the US take steps to strengthen our nation’s security by meeting more of our energy needs through a strategic ally and partner like Canada, and reduce our dependence on energy resources from unstable, and potentially unfriendly, regions of the world. By approving the Keystone XL pipeline, the Obama administration has an opportunity to put America’s security, economy, and consumers first.”
To read the full letter, click here.
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