Trump's win could be a victory for Dakota Access pipeline

Frustrated with delays dealt by President Barack Obama's administration that owners of the Dakota Access pipeline say have cost them millions, they are taking their grievances to a federal judge, seeking permission to push through with completion of the controversial 1,172-mile project.

In a motion filed Monday night, Dakota Access asked the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to authorize the sole remaining and most hotly contested portion of the pipeline: an underground crossing of the Lake Oahe reservoir along the Missouri River in North Dakota.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers previously had granted permission to Dakota Access to cross under the reservoir, but it put its own decision under review as protests mounted near the Standing Rock Sioux reservation and across the country.

On Monday, the corps said it would not grant an easement to cross Lake Oahe without further discussion and analysis with the Standing Rock Sioux. Tribal members have sharply opposed the pipeline.

The pipeline company says the government-imposed delays on construction have cost it nearly $100 million already. Pipeline work is nearing completion in Iowa, Illinois and the Dakotas.

And in its court filing this week, Dakota Access warned that further delay "would add millions of dollars more each month in costs which cannot be recovered."

'It's only going to get better'

Even without a victory in court, energy experts predict the pipeline eventually will get the green light from the administration of President-elect Donald Trump, who is viewed as a friend of the oil and gas industry.

"I don’t think we can expect to see very much until there’s a new commander-in-chief," said Ed Hirs, an energy fellow at the University of Houston. "It’s the Army Corps of Engineers, right? So the new commander-in-chief, with the advisers he has in place at this point or at least anticipated to have in place, I think it's going to happen."

Hirs expects Trump's positions on energy could usher in new pipeline projects, potentially putting the controversial Keystone XL pipeline back on the table. Still, as in the campaign, Trump's administration likely will remain unpredictable.

"Speaking as someone who reads the paper every day, I'm not so sure that they know what they’re doing yet," Hirs said. "They’re certainly getting their hands around it."

Pipeline nearly done in Iowa, but protesters won't quit

Pipeline company Energy Transfer Partners appears to be banking on more favorable treatment from Trump.

"It’s only going to get better," Energy Transfer Partners CEO Kelcy Warren said on an earnings call two days after Trump's surprise electoral win Nov. 8. "For us to preach that we support infrastructure development and yet do everything we can to block it, that doesn’t feel very good to me. But I think that’s going to change."

In a news release Tuesday, Warren derided the corps' decision to further delay the project.

"This action is motivated purely by politics at the expense of a company that has done nothing but play by the rules it was given,” he said.

The latest Corps response

The corps on Monday acknowledged the Standing Rock Sioux's objections to the pipeline. The tribe's main argument against the project has focused on water.

Though the pipeline route will not cross the reservation, tribal members do rely on the Missouri River for drinking water. Standing Rock members worry that an oil leak could threaten their water, as well as that of millions of Americans downstream.

In its statement, the corps suggested incorporating conditions that would reduce the risk of a spill, as well as hasten spill detection and response.

"The Army has determined that additional discussion and analysis are warranted in light of the history of the Great Sioux Nation’s dispossessions of lands, the importance of Lake Oahe to the tribe, our government-to-government relationship, and the statute governing easements through government property," the Corps statement said.

Standing Rock Sioux Tribal Chairman Dave Archambault II said the announcement didn't deliver everything the tribe was hoping for, though he said it's clear Obama is listening.

“We are encouraged and know that the peaceful prayer and demonstration at Standing Rock have powerfully brought to light the unjust narrative suffered by tribal nations and Native Americans across the country,” Archambault said.

'Death by delay'

Craig Stevens, spokesman for the pro-pipeline Midwest Alliance for Infrastructure Now, said the Obama administration was utilizing a "death by delay" strategy to stop the pipeline.

"I would be surprised if the Obama administration approves this," Stevens said. "I don’t see why they would other than to follow the rule of law. And if they followed the rule of law, they would have approved it already."

With Trump promising more domestic energy production and a culture of deregulation in Washington, Stevens said the industry is optimistic about the future of energy infrastructure projects.

"I don’t think we're even looking for deregulation. We’re looking for a government that follows the rules," he said. "They go by the rules and regulations on the books. They can adapt those rules and regulations, but they can't change in the middle of the game."

Editorial: A disproportionate response to the pipeline protesters

Yet even if Trump offers a friendlier attitude toward the industry, it's not clear how important his administration will view the completion of the Dakota Access pipeline, said Tom Seng, an assistant professor of energy business at the University of Tulsa.

With the pipeline company losing money from delays, Seng said it may have to consider a reroute around Lake Oahe or some other form of compromise, rather than waiting for the courts or Trump's inauguration Jan. 20.

"Let's face it: This is not going to be a high-priority project for his administration," he said. "I don’t see it as something that he can jump right in and get it moving again."