Premier Kenney visits Keystone XL project at Oyen
By JOAN JANZEN
joanjanzen@yahoo.com
The residents of Oyen, Alberta were visited by a special guest on Friday, July 3rd. That’s the day Premier Jason Kenney made an appearance in order to mark the start of construction of the Keystone XL Pipeline. The presentation took place at the pipe field ten miles south of Oyen, a community which is filled with activity as heavy machinery moves in and massive progress is underway.
“We are here at long last, kicking off construction of the Alberta spread of the Keystone XL project. We’re finally getting it done,” Kenney said.
PHOTO BY DIANA WALKER
Premier Jason Kenney welcomes the start of construction of the Keystone XL Pipeline at Oyen, Alberta.
The Canadian pipeline route extends from Hardisty, Alberta to Monchy, Saskatchewan, which is primarily a border crossing between Saskatchewan Highway 4 and U.S. Route 191. From there the pipeline’s route will go into Montana, South Dakota and Nebraska, eventually carrying Alberta crude oil south of the border. The primary contractor for this project is TC Energy.
The Canadian portion of Keystone XL includes approximately 530 kilometres of pipeline and eight pump stations. The project is estimated to create 17,000 jobs in Canada, directly and indirectly, employing en- gineers, surveyors, contractors, hotel workers and fast food workers.
A temporary workforce camp is being constructed in Oyen, in three phases. Once fully completed, it will accommodate 500 personnel and include 133 modular buildings, which will be used for accommodation, kitchen facilities and offices. The camp will generate local employment to help with camp operations such as catering, housekeeping and maintenance. Once the camp is operating, 40 buses will transport construction crews from the site each day.
“As we proceed with this important energy infra- structure project, we anticipate completing 150 - 175 km of pipe in Alberta this year,” said Terry Cunha, Manager of Communications for Keystone XL. The work will be accomplished thanks to the help of more than 600 employees.