The Trump Administration this week approved a border crossing permit for the Bridger Pipeline Extension, seen as a revived alternative to the contentious Keystone XL oil pipeline.

On April 30, President Donald Trump signed a permit to allow Bridger Pipeline LLC to build and operate equipment near the U.S.-Canada border in Phillips County, Montana, for the pipeline intended to carry approximately 550,000 barrels of oil per day to Guernsey, Wyoming.

The pipeline would travel 647 miles through eastern Montana and Wyoming, along the border with North and South Dakota.  Its design would allow for the potential to double throughput in the future, up to approximately 1.13 million barrels per day.

Bridger had submitted an application for the project with the Montana Department of Environmental Quality on Jan. 28, arguing that the pipeline “is necessary to provide additional crude oil transportation capacity from the U.S.-Canada border in Northern Montana to the Guernsey, Wyoming hub.”

It comes at a time when the Trump Administration is driving forward its “energy dominance” agenda, with a focus on removing permitting and regulatory hurdles for large infrastructure projects, such as the pipeline.