The parties behind the Trans Mountain oil pipeline to Canada's western coast haven't yet completed what they need to for the environment, a regulator found.

The National Energy Board approved of Kinder Morgan's plans to triple the capacity of the network to around 890,000 barrels of oil per day in November, though vetting is still under way for some aspects. The project is part of a national effort to tap into markets outside North America as nearly all of Canada's oil exports go to the United States.

The NEB said it completed a pre-construction audit and found planners haven't yet laid out plans regarding safety and environmental protection during the build process.

"This pre-construction audit is one of our proactive tools for regulatory oversight for the NEB," NEB Chairman Peter Watson said in a statement. "This is all about prevention and we believe that significant incidents can be avoided in the future by ensuring companies have the proper systems and processes in place even before they begin construction."

Canada is the fourth largest producer of oil and natural gas liquid in the world. The NEB said export capacity is constricted, however, because pipeline capacity hasn't kept pace with production. Trans Mountain planners can, despite the NEB's latest audit, continue with preparations for matters where all of the regulatory requirements have been met so far.

The NEB in early September said it was satisfied with the environmental plans outlined by the company to expand a port in British Columbia to handle the new volumes from Trans Mountain.

Less than 1 percent of Canadian oil is exported now outside of North America. Earlier this week, the NEB suspended a review of the Energy East project because pipeline planner TransCanada asked for a dealy to consider regulatory concerns. Energy East would carry 1.1 million bpd from Alberta and Saskatchewan to eastern Canadian refineries and critics said it would serve primarily as an export route.

Western Canadian leaders, meanwhile, have expressed concerns about Trans Mountain's expansion and the increase in tanker traffic. In early August, British Columbian Environment and Climate Change Strategy Minister George Heyman and Attorney General David Eby said they secured legal counsel to challenge Kinder Morgan's project.

Route hearings for Trans Mountain are scheduled in British Columbia next year.

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August oil production from Norway lower than expected
Washington (UPI) Sep 15, 2017
Total oil production in August from Norway, one of Europe's main suppliers, was slightly lower than expected, the government said Friday. Apart from Russia, Norway is one of the leading energy suppliers to the European economy, designating nearly all of its offshore production for exports. The National Petroleum Directorate reported preliminary figures for August at 1.55 million barrels ... read more

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