Alberta entrepreneurs anxiously await Trans Mountain decision

CALGARY (660 NEWS) – With an announcement expected on Tuesday, Alberta’s small business sector is nervously waiting a decision on Trans Mountain Expansion.

The Trudeau government will decide Tuesday whether to give the Trans Mountain expansion project the greenlight, amid political and legal uncertainty for the pipeline the government bought last year for $4.5 billion.

A survey conducted by the Canadian Federation of Independent Business found regulatory delays are hurting the sector.

“They know the oil and gas sector still primes the pump of the Alberta economy,” said CFIB spokesman Richard Truscott. “As the industry goes, so does the small business community in our province.”

Like many Albertans, entrepreneurs believe the rest of Canada underestimates the importance of the resource sector to the national economy.

“That’s exactly the perception of business owners as well,” Truscott said. “Just like other Albertans, they don’t believe that many other Canadians understand how important the oil and gas sector is to the Alberta economy but to the national scene as well.”

Truscott said business owners are frustrated with seemingly endless delays to the project, and many are getting squeezed financially as the oil and gas sector continues to struggle. But he said it’s not just business owners that are affected, it’s all Canadians.

READ MORE: Decision on fate of Trans Mountain expansion due Tuesday

“The lack of a pipeline and lack of pipeline capacity is really hindering our economy and really hampering the ability of governments from generating revenues they need to pay for important social programs and other government services. So, this is something that all Canadians should care about.”

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