Oilsands pipeline projects look doomed after Nexen oil spill leaves ‘two big football fields… – Financial Post

July 28, 2015

Oilsands pipeline projects look doomed after Nexen oil spill leaves ‘two big football fields of black goo’

It’s becoming increasingly difficult to get oilsands pipeline projects off the ground, and Alberta’s worst spill since 1980 will probably make it tougher.

A rupture in a line operated by Nexen, a unit of China’s Cnooc Ltd., spewed 31,500 barrels of bitumen, waste water and sand into the bog-like muskeg of the province’s north this month, igniting outrage from communities along pipeline routes. The crude in the slurry would be enough to make gasoline to fill up about 15,000 cars.

The leak is bolstering opposition that has stalled every major crude export project from Canada in recent years and may lead to more stringent regulations. The delays to multibillion-dollar pipelines such as TransCanada Corp.’s Keystone XL are threatening output growth and have led producers to turn to costlier trains for transport.

Read More: http://business.financialpost.com/news/energy/oilsands-pipeline-projects-look-doomed-after-nexen-oil-spill-leaves-two-big-football-field-of-black-goo