Calgary-based South Bow says it is aggressively seeking oil shipments to the US Gulf Coast
The management of South Bow Corp. they say customers have been clamoring to send more oil to the southern part of its pipeline network.
Richard Prior, South Bow's chief operating officer, says the country's recent turmoil has fueled demand for more oil exports, including to the US Gulf Coast.
South Bow operates the Keystone system from eastern Alberta to refineries in the Midwest and the Texas coast.
South Bow Corp. based in Calgary operates approximately 4,900 kilometers of pipelines from Alberta to the US Gulf Coast.
Source: SouthBow.com
The average for Keystone during the first three months of 2026 was 616,000 barrels per day, while the US Gulf Coast segment averaged 709,000 barrels per day.
He previously said Keystone's Gulf Coast leg could move more than 800,000 barrels a day, but there is limited capacity to increase capacity beyond that level.
South Bow is in the midst of weighing bids for a potential new project called the Prairie Connector, which would send contaminated oil sands across the Canada-US border and into US territories.
Get weekly money news
Get expert insights, Q&A on markets, real estate, inflation, and personal finance information delivered to you every Saturday.
The Prairie Connector would have used a pipeline intended for the defunct Keystone XL expansion project, which was scuttled amid fierce environmental and political opposition a few years ago.
Keystone XL was followed by TC Energy Corp., which started its oil pipeline business to build the South Bow in 2024.
US President Donald Trump recently gave approval to a separate proposal by Bridger Pipeline LLC linking Wyoming to Canada-
US border. That pipe can be connected to the Prairie Connector.
This represents a meaningful development in the process of enabling cross-border energy infrastructure and has understandably attracted attention,” said South Bow CEO Bevin Wirzba.
“That said, we continue to work diligently to ensure that any project we develop is subject to our risk appetite and that risk is appropriately placed among the organizations best placed to manage and mitigate it.”
As for what the relationship might look like, Wirzba said, “We're still baking the cake on a few things for that.”
To be comfortable making a final decision to invest in the Prairie Connector, it will need to nail down the “general elements” such as its contracting strategy, supply chain, procurement and cost estimates, Wirzba said.
But it doesn't end there.
“We need to make sure we manage and mitigate any risks that may occur in the project in the future,” Wirzba said.
“We see good alignment between the regulatory environments in Canada and the United States, but we cannot expose our shareholders to risks they cannot tolerate, and we will not.”
Last Thursday, South Bow posted first quarter revenue of US $77 million, down from US $88 million in the same period of 2025.
Profits reached 37 cents US per share compared to 42 cents US last year.
South Bow, which keeps its books in US dollars, reported that revenue fell to US$491 million from US$498 million.
© 2026 The Canadian Press
