The British Columbia government has unexpectedly reversed its earlier opposition to oil pipeline expansion and is now championing a plan to significantly increase the capacity of the federally owned Trans Mountain pipeline system by more than half a million barrels per day, with results targeted as early as 2026.

The province's new support for the Trans Mountain optimisation proposal, which could add roughly 510,000 barrels a day (b/d) of capacity, is being viewed as a countermeasure against Alberta’s pressure for a costly, entirely new pipeline to the West Coast.

B.C. Energy Minister Adrian Dix is leading the charge for the optimisation plan, calling a new pipeline "economic folly." Dix argues that improving the existing, taxpayer-funded pipeline is the most logical path.

“I actually thought this proposal [to optimise Trans Mountain] would be more meaningful to Alberta and to the federal government, because it’s demonstrably better in every possible way,” Dix said in an interview Friday. 

He noted that the Trans Mountain expansion cost Canadians $34 billion, and the optimisation could be achieved for around $4 billion. 

In February 2025, Trans Mountain’s vice president said the company was exploring options to increase capacity by as much as 300,000 bpd due to uncertainty about new tariffs proposed earlier by the Trump administration. 

Alberta’s Energy Minister, Brian Jean, expressed strong support for the effort, saying in an emailed statement that maximising the pipeline's capacity is "critical" for Alberta and Canada to benefit from Asian and West Coast U.S. markets. 

The capacity increase is proposed through a three-part wish list, including adding approximately 30 kilometres of new pipeline and 11 new pump stations to the main system. This could add about 360,000 b/d, with the province aiming to see its oil production double by 2035. 

A cheaper, quicker project involves introducing drag-reducing agents to the line for up to 90,000 b/d of additional flow by late 2026.

Additionally, B.C. has tentatively approved dredging the Second Narrows waterway in Vancouver Harbour, which would allow Aframax tankers to load to full capacity at the Westridge marine terminal in Burnaby, overcoming current 70% capacity limits caused by the shallow navigation channel.

Since the Trans Mountain taps were fully opened in May 2024, the pipeline has helped ease the oil export crunch and has contributed to a tripling of Canadian crude exports to countries other than the U.S. 

Trans Mountain CEO Mark Maki previously stated that boosting capacity on the existing system should be the priority before pursuing a new line.