After months of Premier Danielle Smith vowing to find a company willing to develop a new oil export pipeline, the Alberta government itself is taking the plunge.
As a result, Smith is the third Alberta premier in a row to commit taxpayer money in an attempt to help the industry export more oil out of the province.
The move is already drawing both praise and concern from the oilpatch, which wants a new pipeline but is cautious about government intervention.
There are also many challenges ahead for such a proposal to proceed such as existing federal policies, the regulatory process, and whether enough oil producers are willing to make long-term commitments to use a new pipeline.
On Wednesday, Smith said the provincial government will propose its own project, with help from an advisory group that includes the pipeline companies South Bow, Enbridge and Trans Mountain.
So far, Smith is committing $14 million to create and submit the proposal to the federal Major Projects Office in the
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