{"id":822832,"date":"2026-07-24T10:18:22","date_gmt":"2026-07-24T10:18:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/822832\/"},"modified":"2026-07-24T10:18:22","modified_gmt":"2026-07-24T10:18:22","slug":"trans-mountain-pipeline-ceo-confident-it-will-be-built","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/822832\/","title":{"rendered":"Trans Mountain pipeline: CEO confident it will be built"},"content":{"rendered":"

CTV\u2019s QP host Vassy Kapelos speaks with Trans Mountain CEO Mark Maki about a proposed oil pipeline to the West Coast, saying he believes it can be built. <\/p>\n

EDMONTON \u2013 As the federal and Alberta governments advance a proposal for a new major oil pipeline to the West Coast, the CEO of the Crown corporation now tasked with spearheading the project\u2019s development is expressing confidence that the new pipeline will be built.<\/p>\n

Prime Minister Mark Carney announced earlier this month that the Canadian government will refer Alberta Premier Danielle Smith\u2019s proposal for a new West Coast pipeline to the Major Projects Office, and he tapped the Trans Mountain Corporation to lead the project\u2019s development. <\/p>\n

\u201cYes, and yes,\u201d Trans Mountain CEO Mark Maki told CTV News Chief Political Correspondent Vassy Kapelos, when asked whether he thinks the pipeline can and will be built.<\/p>\n

\u201cI certainly think it can be built,\u201d Maki said in the exclusive interview with CTV News on Thursday. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe already have built something like it,\u201d he added. \u201cThis one is a little longer, a little bigger, more capacity than what Trans Mountain built before, but I think it\u2019s very necessary in the global context that we live in today, and that\u2019s become infinitely clearer over the last year.\u201d <\/p>\n

\"\"\u2018Certainly think it can be built:\u2019 Trans Mountain CEO on West Coast pipeline Trans Mountain CEO Mark Maki told CTV News chief political correspondent Vassy Kapelos that he’s confident the proposed West Coast pipeline will be built. (CTV News) <\/p>\n

The pipeline proposed by Alberta would largely follow the existing Trans Mountain corridor and would carry one million barrels per day to the B.C. coast, doubling Canada\u2019s oil export capacity to tide water.<\/p>\n

This potential increase in Canadian oil export capacity has taken on added global importance, following the seismic energy supply crunches caused by the ongoing shipping disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhether it\u2019s the United States, China, Korea, Japan, India, like all those are countries that will benefit from Canada\u2019s energy resources,\u201d Maki also said. \u201cCanada has an incredibly unique resource base here that is going to be in high demand for a very long time to come.\u201d<\/p>\n

Kanji Yamanouchi, Japan\u2019s outgoing ambassador to Canada, told CTV News earlier this month that his country sees \u201cenormous potential\u201d in Canadian oil exports<\/a>, especially as the ongoing war in the Middle East continues to devastate energy supply chains in Asia. <\/p>\n

\"\"20230925140928-a713c4977895364de526a70215b6f2318f1ddffeea38e8c8387e84478b5893d7.jpg Workers place pipe during construction of the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion on farmland, in Abbotsford, B.C., on Wednesday, May 3, 2023. THE CANADIAN PRESS\/Darryl Dyck \u2018Compelling case\u2019 for new pipeline: Maki <\/p>\n

While there appears to be political will for the construction of a new pipeline, only one private company \u2014 Pembina \u2014 has so far committed to being a private sector investor in the project. <\/p>\n

The Canadian and Alberta governments will share equal partnership<\/a> in the proposed pipeline, according to Carney, with a meaningful equity stake reserved for Indigenous Peoples.<\/p>\n

Carney insists both the federal and provincial governments\u2019 ownership stakes will act as \u201ccatalysts\u201d to create additional opportunities for private investment as the project advances. <\/p>\n

Trans Mountain, Canada\u2019s only other major oil pipeline to the West Coast, was ultimately financed by public money, after the federal government purchased the pipeline and the expansion project in 2018 for $4.5 billion. The purchase followed Kinder Morgan Canada\u2019s decision to suspend the project, citing regulatory uncertainty.<\/p>\n

The cost of the project ballooned under the federal government, eventually costing the public coffers about $34 billion. The expanded Trans Mountain pipeline system launched operations in 2024.<\/p>\n

\"\"Prime Minister Mark Carney and Alberta Premier Danielle Smith announce a proposed pipeline from Alberta to the B.C. coast in Calgary on Thursday, July 02, 2026. THE CANADIAN PRESS\/Todd Korol Prime Minister Mark Carney and Alberta Premier Danielle Smith announce a proposed pipeline from Alberta to the B.C. coast in Calgary on Thursday, July 02, 2026. THE CANADIAN PRESS\/Todd Korol <\/p>\n

When asked about the potential price tag on this new project, Maki said he thinks the new pipeline will be \u201cvery competitive\u201d with the Trans Mountain system \u201con a per-unit basis.\u201d <\/p>\n

\u201cThe reason for that is economies of scale,\u201d said Maki, highlighting the capacity of the proposed pipeline, the added clarity provided by regulatory reforms and the proof of concept provided by the existing Trans Mountain system. <\/p>\n

\u201cI expect this process to be much smoother than the one that Trans Mountain went through before, so there are some things working in the advantage of the new system,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Maki also highlighted the \u201cvery, very strong\u201d financial case provided by the existing Trans Mountain pipeline.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe paid $1.7 billion into the treasury last year in dividends and interest,\u201d Maki said. \u201cWe\u2019ll beat that this year. We\u2019ll probably reinvest some capital in the years thereafter, and then again, when we come back out the other side of that, this is going to be a very profitable investment for the country.\u201d <\/p>\n

\"\"Workers position pipe during construction of the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion in Abbotsford, B.C., on Wednesday, May 3, 2023. THE CANADIAN PRESS\/Darryl Dyck Workers position pipe during construction of the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion in Abbotsford, B.C., on Wednesday, May 3, 2023. THE CANADIAN PRESS\/Darryl Dyck <\/p>\n

\u201cI expect the new system to be the same, and the overall economic impact that that system will enable is ginormous to the country,\u201d he added. \u201cI think that there\u2019s a very, very compelling case for the new pipeline.\u201d <\/p>\n

When it comes to the potential sale of the existing Trans Mountain pipeline, Maki told Kapelos he believes the system is an important strategic asset to Canada, and the government shouldn\u2019t sell it anytime soon. <\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m unabashed on this, I think Canada should keep holding this thing,\u201d he said. \u201cIt may sell off pieces of it to Indigenous (People). It may sell off pieces of it to, say, pension funds. But I think Canada should always keep its fingers on this to a degree, its ownership interest to a degree.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think it\u2019s far too strategic to the country, and so for that reason, I think I would be more of a long-term holder,\u201d Maki also said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"CTV\u2019s QP host Vassy Kapelos speaks with Trans Mountain CEO Mark Maki about a proposed oil pipeline to…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":821704,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[712,49,48,44],"class_list":["post-822832","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-canada","tag-apple-news","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/822832","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=822832"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/822832\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/821704"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=822832"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=822832"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=822832"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}