Minnesota utility regulators have granted a final approval to Enbridge Energy’s proposed Line 3 crude oil pipeline replacement.
The Public Utilities Commission on Tuesday unanimously rejected the last pending petitions for reconsideration, including one from the state Commerce Department.
READ MORE: Opponents of Line 3 pipeline replacement project file appeals in Minnesota
The Commerce Department had joined with tribal and environmental groups in challenging the project’s approvals before the Minnesota Court of Appeals, which sent the case back to the commission last month.
Gov. Tim Walz says his administration will study Tuesday’s decision before deciding next steps.
READ MORE: Enbridge confident Line 3 pipeline will open this year despite new challenge
Line 3 has carried Canadian crude since the 1960s and is showing its age.
The new line would cross Alberta, a corner of North Dakota and northern Minnesota to an Enbridge terminal in Superior, Wisconsin.
Besides clearing the legal challenges, Calgary-based Enbridge also needs state and federal permits, which the company hopes to secure around end of the year.
Watch below (Aug. 16, 2018): Early work on Enbridge’s Line 3 replacement, one of the country’s biggest infrastructure projects, was unveiled to a select number of media, dignitaries and officials on Thursday.
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