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Summary
- TC Energy Corporation is planning to slash over 1,000 construction jobs at its Keystone XL project.
- The decision comes after US President Joe Biden canceled the cross-border pipeline’s construction permit on Wednesday.
- Following the news, TC Energy stocks were down over one per cent around 8 am EST on Friday.
TC Energy Corporation is planning to slash over 1,000 construction jobs at its Keystone XL project, a decision that comes after US President Joe Biden canceled the cross-border pipeline’s construction permit on Wednesday.
TC Energy reportedly informed its workers about the upcoming job cuts via an email, adding that it will be halting work on the XL pipeline’s expansion project.
The Canadian oil company had warned about massive job cuts in the past when Biden promised to overturn Keystone XL pipeline’s presidential permit if he won. Even as the executive order came in on Wednesday, TC Energy released a statement saying that the “disappointing” but “expected” decision will have an impact thousands of union jobs.
Following the news, TC Energy (TSX:TRP) stocks were down over one per cent around 8 am EST on Friday.
What Happens to Keystone XL Now?
Activists and climate change experts have been against the Keystone XL project for over a decade now. It was in the light of these protests that former president Barrack Obama halted its construction during his tenure, until Donald Trump came into power and resurrected the project in 2017. Biden’s decision to keep the pipeline from expanding into US territory was also taken on the grounds of its impact on the environment.
But the years of legal battles and disruption to its construction has substantially impacted the project and its workers too. In the latest email to employees, Keystone XL president Richard Prior warned other developers to take what happened to the project as “a concerning signal”.
TC Energy had reportedly completed the XL pipeline’s border-crossing construction and started work on pump stations in the US. Legal hurdles, however, had stopped it from going further with constructions.
