President Donald Trump signed an order Thursday authorizing the Bridger Canada-Wyoming pipeline, a proposed crude oil project that would move Canadian oil from the U.S.-Canada border to Wyoming, Reuters reported.
The decision marks a major political win for Trump’s energy agenda and a sharp contrast with the Biden-era approach to cross-border oil infrastructure. It also gives new momentum to a project that supporters say could strengthen North American energy security, even as environmental groups, landowners and tribal advocates prepare for a familiar fight over pipelines, permitting and spill risks.
Bridger Canada-Wyoming pipeline gets Trump backing
Trump’s order authorizes Bridger Pipeline’s proposed project to transport Canadian crude from the international border to Wyoming, according to Reuters. The move fits the administration’s broader push to accelerate energy infrastructure and expand oil transportation capacity at a time of high fuel prices and instability in global energy markets.
The project is known as the Bridger Pipeline Expansion. The Bureau of Land Management said in a Federal Register notice that Bridger Pipeline LLC submitted an application and plan of development Jan. 30 for a crude oil pipeline stretching from the U.S.-Canada border in Phillips County, Montana, to an existing crude oil terminal near Guernsey in Platte County, Wyoming.
That route matters. Guernsey is a key crude oil hub, and additional pipeline capacity from Canada would give North American producers more options to move barrels into U.S. markets. Reuters previously reported that Bridger’s proposed pipeline would be about 645 miles long and initially capable of transporting up to 550,000 barrels per day.
The conservative case for the project is straightforward. More pipeline capacity means more reliable energy movement, fewer bottlenecks and less dependence on hostile or unstable foreign suppliers. In a market already hit by Middle East turmoil and higher gasoline prices, domestic and allied energy infrastructure should be treated as a strategic asset, not a political liability.
A Keystone XL comparison returns
The Bridger project is already being compared with the canceled Keystone XL pipeline. Reuters reported in March that South Bow, the company spun out of former Keystone XL proponent TC Energy, has considered reviving parts of already-built pipeline infrastructure in Alberta and linking with U.S. partner Bridger Pipeline.
That plan is not identical to Keystone XL. Reuters reported that the new proposal would follow a different U.S. route than the pipeline canceled by former President Joe Biden in 2021 after years of Indigenous and environmental opposition. Still, the political parallels are obvious: Canadian crude, a U.S. border crossing, large-scale pipeline construction and a White House decision that could reshape the project’s future.
The Associated Press reported earlier this month that some Wyoming locals have referred to the Bridger Pipeline Expansion as “Keystone Light,” a nickname reflecting the belief that the project could partially revive industry ambitions tied to Keystone XL. AP also noted that Keystone XL was larger, with planned capacity of up to 830,000 barrels per day, while Bridger’s proposal would move about 550,000 barrels daily.
That comparison will energize both sides. Supporters will argue that the project is a practical, updated approach to moving allied crude. Opponents will argue that Washington is reopening a fight they thought had been settled.
Energy security meets environmental review
Trump’s order is significant, but it does not mean every regulatory issue is finished. The BLM said the proposed project would cross private, state and federal lands managed by the BLM, the U.S. Forest Service and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, according to the Federal Register notice.
The same notice said the BLM will serve as the lead federal agency for environmental analysis, with the Montana Department of Environmental Quality acting as a joint lead. The project also requires analysis under Montana’s Major Facility Siting Act process.
The Associated Press reported that the 36-inch pipeline would span 647 miles and include about 210 miles across Crook, Weston, Niobrara, Goshen and Platte counties in eastern Wyoming. AP also reported that Bridger is owned by True Cos., which has faced scrutiny over past pipeline spills.
That record will be central to the coming debate. AP reported that True Cos. pipelines had several significant spills, including a 45,000-gallon diesel spill in eastern Wyoming in 2022 and a 2015 incident that released more than 50,000 gallons of Bakken crude into the Yellowstone River in Montana.
Pipeline supporters should not dismiss those concerns. Energy development requires public trust, and public trust requires strong construction standards, serious leak detection, fast response capability and transparent oversight.
But environmental review should not become a veto by delay. The country needs energy infrastructure, and the law should evaluate projects fairly, not bury them in endless process because activists dislike fossil fuels.
Why the project matters now
The timing makes Trump’s order more important. U.S. gasoline prices have climbed above $4 per gallon, and global crude markets remain under pressure from the Iran crisis and disruption around the Strait of Hormuz. A country that cannot move energy efficiently from allied producers to domestic markets leaves its economy exposed.
Pipelines are not glamorous. They are not campaign slogans. They are infrastructure. They move fuel more efficiently and safely than many alternatives, and they help connect production to refineries and consumers.
Reuters reported that many U.S. refiners depend heavily on Canadian crude exports, which flow south at roughly 4.4 million barrels per day. Canadian supply is not the same as relying on Iran, Venezuela or other adversarial regimes. It is energy from a neighboring ally, moved through a continent where both countries have a strong interest in lower costs and stronger supply chains.
The free-market argument is also clear. Companies should be allowed to invest in infrastructure that customers need, provided they meet reasonable safety and environmental standards. Washington’s role should be to enforce rules, protect property rights and approve lawful projects in a timely manner, not manipulate permitting to satisfy climate politics.
The fight is just beginning
The Bridger order will not end opposition. AP reported that the public scoping process is intended to help federal and Montana officials identify potential impacts and alternatives. That process will give landowners, local governments, tribal stakeholders and environmental groups a forum to raise concerns.
A balanced view is necessary. Rural landowners should not be steamrolled. Tribal consultation must be serious. Waterways and agricultural land deserve protection. A pipeline company with a spill history should face tough questions about safety, maintenance and response systems.
At the same time, America should not pretend that energy demand disappears because a permit is denied. Blocking pipelines can shift transportation to rail or trucks, raise costs and deepen dependence on less reliable foreign supply. The real question is not whether the economy will use oil. It will. The question is whether the country builds modern infrastructure to move it responsibly.
Trump’s authorization puts the Bridger Canada-Wyoming pipeline on a faster and more favorable political track. It also sets up a broader test of whether the United States can build major energy infrastructure without turning every project into a decade-long legal war.
Energy security requires production. It also requires transportation. Trump’s order recognizes that basic reality.
