The controversial pipeline expansion project, which carries crude oil from Alberta to the B.C. coast, was taken over by the Canadian government from energy infrastructure company Kinder Morgan in 2018 for $4.5 billion. Now, it’s expected to cost up to $34.5 billion. That’s partially because there was “no contractor” who would agree to set fixed costs back when Kinder owned the project, CEO Mark Maki said in a parliamentary hearing on Monday. (The Logic)

Talking point: The pipeline expansion will nonetheless recover taxpayers’ capital, if Ottawa remains a “disciplined seller,” Maki said. “That’s the only thing the Trans Mountain leadership team is interested in: the taxpayer gets back their value,” Maki said, touting the project’s increase in capacity over the span of its development. The use of inefficient construction techniques—stopping and starting as the project moved across the country—hindered their ability to reap the benefits of economies of scale, Maki said.