Enbridge Approves $1.4 Billion Project to Boost Canadian Oil Flowing to U.S. Refineries

By Robb M. Stewart

Pipeline operator Enbridge will push ahead with a $1.4 billion expansion of its core network to boost deliveries of Canadian heavy oil and reach key refining markets in the U.S. Midwest and Gulf Coast.

The Canadian energy company said Friday it reached a final investment decision on the first phase of a project to optimize its Mainline network, which is forecast to add egress capacity from Canada that will support increased production in the country and connect with what it described as the best refining markets in North America.

The project is set to add 150,000 barrels a day to Enbridge's Mainline system capacity and 100,000 barrels a day to the Flanagan South pipeline. The capacity is expected to be available in 2027.

The decision to greenlight the expansion comes despite heightened trade tensions between Canada and the U.S. in the wake of the Trump administration's shift in policy and tariffs, and as governments in Canada are looking to buttress the economy. Canada's energy-rich western provinces are looking to boost production and exports, including by adding pipelines and seeking out new markets.

"This project demonstrates the competitive advantage of leveraging existing networks to meet growing customer demand, supporting long-term energy security and affordability across North America," Colin Gruending, Enbridge's president of liquids pipelines, said.

The project will lift capacity on Mainline through upstream optimization and enhancements to terminals, said Enbridge, and the company plans to add pump stations and bolster terminals on Flanagan South to that will use existing capacity on the company's Seaway pipline.

The Calgary, Alberta, company moves about 30% of the crude oil produced in North America, and also transports almost 20% of the natural gas consumed in the U.S.

Its Mainline network includes the Canadian Mainline system of pipelines running from Edmonton to the Canada-U.S. border in Manitoba, plus U.S. Mainline, which carries on to Clearbrook, Minn., and Superior, Wis., and delivers crude to markets in Minnesota, northern Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Michigan and southern Ontario. The first pipeline in the Mainline network, Line 1, from Edmonton, Alberta, and was built in 1950.

Write to Robb M. Stewart at [e-mail]

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

11-14-25 0832ET