Biden’s reported plans to kill Keystone XL pipeline alarm Canadian officials

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President-elect Joe Biden is considering canceling the cross-border permit for TC energy’s Keystone XL pipeline -- and Canadian officials are worried.

Jason Kenney, the 18th Premier of Alberta, said in a tweet that he is "deeply concerned by reports that the incoming administration of President-elect Joe Biden may repeal the Presidential permit for the Keystone XL border crossing."

The project is slated to move 830,000 barrels of crude oil daily from the province of Alberta to Nebraska, but it's been reported that cancellation of this $9 billion project is one of Biden’s Day One climate change actions.

A source close to the Biden administration and the pipeline project told Fox News, "Biden folks were weighing the decision on the manufacturing jobs numbers, but clearly needed to give an early win to the environmentalists on his team."

The same source went on to say the pipeline company and trade union partners have stepped up their messaging around the environmental offsets with the pipeline moving forward with a net zero emission standard.

TC Energy announced Sunday that the project would achieve net-zero emissions across operations by 2023.  

But, Canadian officials still fear that this cancellation will kill jobs on both sides of the border, weaken the Canada-U.S. relationship and undermine U.S. national security.

Richard Madan, correspondent for Canada’s premier newscast, CTV News, said in a tweet that Canadian officials view the expected cancellation as "a punch in the face to Canada."

Keystone XL had become a political symbol of the fight between climate activists and the oil industry.

The project has been controversial since first proposed over a decade ago. Opponents argue its stimulation of oil sands development contributes to climate change. On the other hand, Canada’s oil industry argues Keystone XL is essential to supplying heavy crude U.S. Gulf Coast refineries.

Biden is expected to rescind the presidential permit for Keystone XL through an executive order on Inauguration Day, reversing one of President Trump’s first actions in office.