The proposed 650-mile pipeline, often referred to by critics as “Keystone Light” because of its similarities to the scrapped Keystone XL line, would transport up to 550,000 barrels of crude oil per day from Saskatchewan into northeastern Montana before extending through Montana and Wyoming to connect with existing U.S. pipeline infrastructure.

Trump signed the permit in the Oval Office, authorizing the line to cross the U.S.-Canada border and allowing the transport of crude oil as well as petroleum products including gasoline, diesel, kerosene and liquefied petroleum gas.“Slightly different from the last administration. They wouldn’t sign a pipeline deal.

And we have pipelines going up,” Trump said after approving the project.At full capacity, the pipeline would carry roughly two-thirds the volume planned for Keystone XL, which was partially constructed before former President Joe Biden revoked its permit in January 2021 on his first day in office, citing climate concerns.

Trump had approved Keystone XL during his first term, but the project became a flashpoint in North American energy politics after Biden’s reversal angered Canadian officials and Alberta’s provincial government, which had invested more than $1 billion in the venture.

Unlike Keystone XL, the Bridger Pipeline Expansion would not cross Native American reservations, a key point of contention in past pipeline disputes. Company officials said more than 70% of the route would be built within existing pipeline corridors and about 80% would cross private land.

Bridger Pipeline LLC said the line would transport several grades of crude, including oil from Canada’s oil sands region, for refining or export in the United States.The project still requires additional state and federal environmental approvals before construction can begin. Company officials said they expect construction to start in 2027, with completion targeted for late 2028 or early 2029, potentially before Trump leaves office in January 2029.

Environmental groups have already signaled opposition, citing the risk of spills and the broader climate implications of expanding fossil fuel infrastructure.“The biggest concern we see right now is the concern inherent in all pipeline projects which is the risk of spills,” said Jenny Harbine, an attorney with environmental law group Earthjustice.

“Pipelines rupture and leak. It’s just a fact of pipelines.”Groups opposing the project include the Montana Environmental Information Center and WildEarth Guardians.Bridger Pipeline and subsidiaries of parent company True Companies have faced scrutiny over previous major spills, including more than 50,000 gallons of crude oil released into Montana’s Yellowstone River in 2015, contaminating a city’s drinking water supply, and a 2016 North Dakota spill of more than 600,000 gallons that affected the Little Missouri River and a tributary.

Subsidiaries of True Companies later agreed to pay a $12.5 million civil penalty to settle a federal lawsuit related to the Montana and North Dakota incidents. A separate 45,000-gallon diesel spill occurred in Wyoming in 2022.Company spokesperson Bill Salvin said Bridger has since introduced an AI-based leak detection system designed to accelerate incident response and plans to place pipeline sections 30 to 40 feet beneath major rivers including the Yellowstone and Missouri to reduce spill risks.

“We designed the pipeline with integrity and safety in mind,” Salvin said, adding that emergency response systems were in place in the event of a leak.Casper, Wyoming-based Bridger operates more than 3,700 miles of gathering and transmission pipelines across North Dakota, Montana and Wyoming.

The approval marks another step in Trump’s broader effort to expand domestic and cross-border fossil fuel infrastructure as part of his second-term energy agenda, reversing several climate-focused restrictions imposed under Biden.