US review gives boost to Keystone oil pipeline

WASHINGTON (REUTERS) - The Keystone XL oil pipeline got a boost on Friday when the US State Department said the project would not likely change the rate at which Canada's oil sands are developed, discounting fears it would be responsible for additional greenhouse gas emissions.

The report is far from the last word on Keystone. The environmental assessment must be finalised after the public comment. Then federal agencies will have 90 days to work with the State Department to determine whether the pipeline is in the national interest.

TransCanada Corp's proposed project is "unlikely to have a substantial impact" on development of Alberta's oil sands, the world's third-richest oil deposit, the Department said in a long-awaited report of more than 2,000 pages.

It said the pipeline would result in "no substantial change in global greenhouse gas emissions." The more than 800,000 barrel per day pipeline would have little environmental impact on most resources along its proposed route, provided the company takes certain measures to make it safer, the review added.