Gaining Ground April 2014

Trans Mountain Pipeline Project picks up pace
An update from Christie Libby, Stakeholder Engagement Specialist for Kinder Morgan
Kinder Morgan seeks to clarify project impact
During the General Membership Meeting on March 15, 2014,
Stakeholder Engagement and Communications Specialist for Kinder
Morgan, Ms. Christie Libby, was given an opportunity to speak to
guests about the Trans Mountain Expansion project.
The proposed twinning of the pipeline will run directly through
Burnaby on its way from Edmonton, and more than double its carrying
capacity on its way to Burnaby’s Westridge tanker terminal.
As the project has recently started to move through its regulatory
approval processes, there has been alarm raised by local social and
environmental groups, but Libby took the opportunity to clarify
many of the claims, myths, and facts surrounding the project.
• The pipeline will transport 890,000 barrels of oil
per day - the equivalent of 1,400 tanker trucks
• 980km of 36” pipeline and 12 new pump stations
need to be built between Edmonton and Burnaby
• TMX projected capital cost is $5.4Bn, with $800M
going towards local businesses
• Burnaby’s Westridge Marine Terminal will need 14
new storage tanks and a new dock complex with
3 tanker berths
TMX aims to put Canadians to work first
While taking questions from the floor, Libby was asked
about Kinder Morgan’s stance on the use of Temporary
Foreign Workers, especially during its peak, when an estimated
4,500 jobs could be created.
Libby stated that, while up to 50% of jobs may rely on
“non-local” labour (sourced outside of B.C., Canada, or
otherwise), Kinder Morgan is committed to “optimizing”
the use of local, provincial, and Canadian workers to receive
the work wherever possible, and currently no deals or plans
are in place to make use of temporary foreign workers.
Libby continued by saying that they are currently working
with local educational institutions and companies, as well as
labour groups such as the IUOE, to train people now to meet
the demand their project will create.
This ties in with Local 115’s ongoing Northern Training
Strategy, which aims to bring training opportunities to local
people within the vicinity of potentially large projects, creating
skilled local resources for companies and contractors.
Gaining Ground | The International Union of Operating Engineers Local 115
April 2014