Alberta's premier stumps for Keystone XL

WASHINGTON, Feb. 5 (UPI) -- While clearly in the region's interests, the energy relationship between the United States and Canada is about more than Keystone XL, Alberta's premier said.

Submitted for approval more than six years ago, TransCanada's planned Keystone XL oil pipeline from Alberta has become a scapegoat for the politics surrounding the debate over North American energy. Alberta Premier Jim Prentice told members of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce of his long-standing support for the pipeline.

"I have long been a vocal advocate for the Keystone pipeline and for its approval by the U.S. government," he said in prepared remarks sent to UPI.

From vetting of public comments on a State Department review, to delays because of legal challenges over the pipeline's route in Nebraska, the White House has been accused of dragging its feet on the pipeline's approval. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency sparked further frustration when it said more review was needed because previous analyses were based on oil priced about 20 percent higher than current levels.

TransCanada countered the EPA's position by noting Keystone XL was submitted when oil was around $40 per barrel. On the EPA's concerns about greenhouse gas emissions, the company argued "pipelines produce the fewest amounts of emissions to move oil to the markets where it is needed."

Prentice sought to assure those in Washington that environmental standards in Alberta were "at least as high" as those for the oil industry in the United States.

As environment minister, Prentice said delays in the Keystone XL approval process meant Canada may want to consider expanding its export potential beyond North American borders.

"I want to be clear that the energy relationship shared by our two nations is much bigger than Keystone," the hold the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.

President Barack Obama made similar comments about debates surrounding U.S. energy policy.