TransCanada sees Keystone XL decision by first quarter, posts surge in profit

By John Benny and Julie Gordon

(Reuters) - Canadian pipeline operator TransCanada Corp said on Thursday it expects the Nebraska Supreme Court to reach a decision on its Keystone XL pipeline by the first quarter of 2019.

The hearing, scheduled to be held on Thursday, is crucial as residents as well as environmental groups have been opposing the pipeline's route through the region. If they win, it will create yet another hurdle for the already embattled $8 billion project.

The company, which reported third-quarter results, said earnings from its liquids pipelines business rose 56 percent to C$316 million.

The Keystone project cleared a key hurdle in September after the U.S. State Department issued an environmental assessment concluding that an alternative route through Nebraska would not harm water or wildlife.

"Looking ahead, we continue to methodically advance more than C$20 billion of projects under development including Keystone XL and the Bruce Power life extension agreement," TransCanada Chief Executive Officer Russ Girling said in a statement.

The project is important for Canadian oil producers, who face steep discounts on their product due to transportation constraints out of Western Canada.

U.S. President Donald Trump has backed the project, which was axed by former President Barack Obama in 2015 on environmental concerns relating to emissions that cause climate change.

The pipeline operator posted a 52 percent rise in quarterly profit. The Calgary, Alberta-based company's net income rose to C$928 million ($708.18 million), or C$1.02 per share, in the quarter ended Sept. 30, from C$612 million, or 70 Canadian cents per share, a year earlier.

Revenue fell marginally to C$3.16 billion.

($1 = 1.3104 Canadian dollars)

(Reporting by John Benny in Bengaluru and Julie Gordon in Vancouver; Editing by Sriraj Kalluvila and Arun Koyyur)