Company Behind Keystone XL Pipeline Demands $15 Billion From US Government

TransCanada, the company behind the Keystone XL Pipeline, is demanding the U.S. government pay them $15 billion after they pulled the application for the pipeline's construction. They are claiming that the Biden Administration's decision to halt the project is what led to them pulling the project, but somehow this means that they owe TransCanada $15 billion. Ring of Fire's Farron Cousins explains what's happening and why the company shouldn't be entitled to anything.

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*This transcript was generated by a third-party transcription software company, so please excuse any typos.

TransCanada the company that has been pushing the Keystone XL pipeline on the United States since the last days of the Bush administration is now saying that the U S government owes them $15 billion because they decided to pull the permit for the Keystone XL pipeline. Now, the pipeline had officially been approved by the Trump administration in the early days of the Trump administration. Then of course, in the very early days of the Biden administration, he said, Nope, wait, hold up. We're going to pull the permit for now. It wasn't even a permanent pulling of the permit. And then of course, a couple of weeks ago, trans Canada says to hell with it, we're nixing the project. The Keystone XL pipeline is not going to happen. That was trans Canada's decision to do that. And now they're saying, because we made the decision to not build our pipeline, to take Canadian fossil fuels down to the Gulf coast, to ship them out all over the world. You us state department somehow owe us $15 billion. We may have to lay off as many as a thousand people,

The company saying No, that's sad for those people that may get laid off, But let's be honest. The Company knew that these 1000 people, I guess maybe they had hired to build this pipeline. They knew those weren't permanent jobs. Anyway, the state department's own estimates show that the Keystone XL pipeline would have created a little more than I think 30, 30 permanent jobs here in the United States. The oil was not going to be used here in the United States. Like I mentioned, it was going to be shipped down to the Gulf coast via pipeline, where I was going to be loaded up on tankers and sit all over the world. It wasn't going to help energy here in the United States, the United States was not going to actually profit off of this show. How in the heck can trans Canada come forward and be like, you owe us $15 billion.

Nope. See this wasn't a government contract. And That's what France, Canada. That's why they likely have no real legal case against the U S government here had this been a government contract, had the government approach, trans Canada and said, listen, we want you to build a pipeline. We're going to pay you X amount of money to build this thing. And then you get your money once it's built. Oh no. Now we don't need it. So you don't get your money. Sure. They would actually have a legal case there and they would likely get paid, but that's not what happened here. Trans Canada went to the U S government seeking permission to build their private oil pipeline here in the United States. The United States did not promise them any sum of money to come and

Build the pipeline. Certainly not $15 billion. Trans Canada's angry, trans Canada got their feelings Hurt, right? They've been wanting this pipeline. As I mentioned, this thing went through the Bush administration, the Obama administration, Trump now finally killed under Biden. This thing has been floating around out there for a long, long time. And now the dreams of it are dead, which is a good thing for the environment here in the United States. But after all this time, after all the money they spent lobbying, they want to get paid back. And since they're not going to get paid back in profits from selling that oil all around the globe, they feel that the U S government should foot the bill for all the money.