US Senate approves controversial oil pipeline

The United States Senate has passed a bill approving the completion of the Keystone XL oil pipeline from Canada to Texas, which President Barack Obama has vowed to veto.

Approved by 62 votes to 36, the bill is the first major legislative win for Republicans since they won control of the Senate and increased their majority in the House of Representatives in November’s elections.

It is also set to be the first official collision between Mr Obama and the Republican-controlled Congress.

Republican Senate leader Mitch McConnell set the construction of the pipeline, which would carry more than 800,000 barrels of oil a day to Gulf Coast refineries, as the party’s first target in the new Congress.

Touted as a major job creator by Republicans and opposed by most Democrats and environmentalists, the 1,179-mile pipeline is seen as a bellwether of Mr Obama’s upcoming battles with Republicans.

The bill faces a certain veto by Mr Obama once the House decides whether to sign off on the Senate’s bill, which includes 41 amendments, or to merge it with its own bill approving Keystone earlier this month.

This was the 10th time the House, controlled by Republicans for four years, approved the pipeline.

Nine Democrats, a fifth of the party’s senators, sided with all 53 Republicans present to pass the Senate bill, which fell short of the 67 votes needed to overcome a presidential veto.

The Democrats included close Obama ally Claire McCaskill of Missouri and moderate Mark Warner of Virginia along with Joe Manchin of West Virginia and Heidi Heitkamp of North Dakota who represent states with significant energy industries.

Mr Obama wants the project, stalled for more than five years, to await the findings of a State Department review and the conclusion of a court action in Nebraska before it is approved.