If Kinder Morgan bails, feds would back new Trans Mountain investors: Morneau
Ottawa is offering to stand behind any and all financial backers of the divisive Trans Mountain pipeline expansion as the Liberal government tries to shore up investor confidence in a country racked with uncertainty over trade and U.S. tax changes.
The government is providing “indemnity” to help ease the political risks for any investors, be they Kinder Morgan — the project’s original architects — or otherwise, to ensure the controversial Alberta-B.C. project can proceed, said Finance Minister Bill Morneau.
And if Kinder Morgan were to abandon its plan to expand the existing pipeline, there are plenty of other investors out there willing to take up the cause, Morneau said — and they, too, will have the backing of the federal Liberal government.
“We believe it’s in the best interests of Canada and Canadians to get this project built,” Morneau told a news conference Wednesday across the street from Parliament Hill.