President Trump stated late Tuesday that a new trade agreement with Canada could include the revival of the Keystone XL pipeline. The announcement coincided with the president's decision to pause a scheduled 50 percent tariff on Canadian goods for three days while the details of a trade deal are finalized.
The Keystone XL project, intended to transport Canadian oil into the United States, was previously abandoned by TC Energy. The company nixed the project after then-President Biden canceled its cross-border permit. TC Energy has since spun off its liquid pipeline operations into a separate entity named South Bow.
In a post on Truth Social, Trump indicated the pipeline "may be awoken from the grave," though he provided no specific details on how the revival would occur. The Hill reported that it reached out to South Bow for comment, but the company stated last year that it had already "moved on" from the project.
For workers and residents in affected regions, a restart would signify a return to construction activity and land-use changes that were halted years ago. Environmental groups and local communities, including those mentioned in related border construction reports like county sheriffs and activists, would likely resume monitoring the legal and environmental impacts of the project. A person in these areas would notice the resumption of heavy equipment transport and site preparation if permits were reissued and construction resumed.
The announcement sets a precedent for linking major energy infrastructure projects directly to broader international trade and tariff negotiations. While the 50 percent tariff on Canadian goods is currently paused for a three-day window to finalize documents, the long-term status of the pipeline remains uncertain due to the company's previous statements about moving on. What happens next depends on the finalization of the trade deal and whether the new entity, South Bow, decides to re-engage with a project it previously abandoned. The immediate deadline is the expiration of the three-day tariff pause.