Canada Greenlights $4 Billion Enbridge Gas Pipeline Expansion in British Columbia

After years of regulatory consideration, the federal government has formally approved Enbridge’s Sunrise Expansion Program a major undertaking that will add 139 kilometres of new natural gas pipeline infrastructure across British Columbia and push the existing network all the way to the U.S. border. Energy and Natural Resources Minister Tim Hodgson made the announcement Friday, framing the decision as a cornerstone of Canada’s broader ambitions as an energy exporter.

The expansion is a significant addition to Enbridge’s existing Westcoast natural gas pipeline system, which already stretches nearly 2,900 kilometres from the gas fields of northeastern British Columbia down to the Canada-U.S. boundary. The project will bolt on up to 300 million cubic feet of new daily LNG capacity, supplementing a system that currently moves 3.6 billion cubic feet of natural gas every day. Beyond the pipeline itself, the program calls for new compression facilities and upgrades to existing infrastructure work that is slated to begin as early as July of this year.

Enbridge placed the economic footprint of the project at more than $3 billion in contributions to Canada’s economy, with the federal and provincial governments together expecting to collect upwards of $700 million in tax revenue over the life of the development. Construction is expected to draw roughly 2,500 workers from surrounding communities and Indigenous groups, a hiring effort that the company says will be closely tied to local labour markets.

British Columbia Premier David Eby called the approval welcome news for provincial workers and cast it as a move that strengthens Canada’s economic self-sufficiency. His endorsement came alongside a notable Indigenous business milestone tied to the project: last year, Enbridge agreed to sell a 12.5 per cent ownership stake in the broader Westcoast system to the Stonlasec8 Indigenous Alliance for $715 million the first transaction to draw on a new federal loan program designed to help Indigenous communities take ownership stakes in resource ventures.

Investors responded warmly to Friday’s news, with shares of Enbridge climbing 1.5 per cent in morning trading.

The announcement was not without political friction. Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre welcomed the decision in tone if not in timing, quipping “Finally!” when asked for his reaction before pivoting to criticise the Liberals for what he described as excessive delays and an ongoing reluctance to approve larger oil export infrastructure. Poilievre reiterated his call for a dedicated bitumen pipeline to the Pacific Coast a proposal that Prime Minister Mark Carney and Alberta Premier Danielle Smith outlined in a November 2025 Memorandum of Understanding but argued the concept still lacks the concrete details needed to move forward.

Environmental advocates were sharply critical, with Environmental Defence calling the approval a step backward on climate. The group argued that natural gas was already the single largest driver of rising global emissions in 2025 and warned that approving infrastructure explicitly designed to scale up LNG exports contradicts Canada’s own climate targets. The Canadian Chamber of Commerce, by contrast, framed the project as a timely and strategically sound move given rising global demand and ongoing pressure on energy supply chains.

Construction on the Sunrise Expansion Program is scheduled to begin this summer, with the pipeline set to enter service in late 2028.