When it comes to new pipeline projects, there's a broad consensus within the energy sector: bring 'em on. Indeed, as former premier Jim Prentice famously said, "We need pipeline infrastructure in every possible direction." His reasoning was that if we don't get those pipelines in all of those directions then Canadians will continue to eat a discount on the fair market value of their oil. But what if that isn't actually true? While the midstream industry works to increase its pipeline capacity through new construction, there is a parallel effort to take better advantage of existing capacity through new technologies - one that has significantly increased capacity on smaller feeder systems. And these technologies, which range from state-of-the-art simulation software to partial upgrading methods, could ease the oil patch's pipeline woes.
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