April 2010 Vol. 237 No. 4

Projects

Keystone XL Pipeline Wins South Dakota PUC Approval

The South Dakota Public Utilities Commission granted a permit with 50 conditions for construction of TransCanada’s Keystone XL Pipeline in western South Dakota. The conditions can be reviewed on the South Dakota PUC’s website.

The proposed Keystone XL project is a 1,980-mile, 36-inch crude oil pipeline that would begin at Hardisty, Alberta and extend southeast through Saskatchewan, Montana, South Dakota and Nebraska. It would incorporate a portion of the Keystone Pipeline to be constructed through Kansas to Cushing, OK, before continuing through Oklahoma to a delivery point near existing terminals in Nederland, TX to serve the Port Arthur, TX marketplace. Also proposed is a 50-mile pipeline to the Houston marketplace.
The Keystone Pipeline will be operated as one integrated pipeline system which will include the proposed Keystone XL pipeline project.

The Keystone XL pipeline route in South Dakota has an estimated length of 313 miles that will cross portions of Harding, Butte, Perkins, Meade, Pennington, Haakon, Jones, Lyman and Tripp counties. The project also includes seven pump stations to be located in Harding, Meade, Haakon, Jones and Tripp counties. The plans specify two pump stations each in Harding and Tripp counties.