Barack Obama's announcement declining the permit for the Keystone XL pipeline has many questioning the future of the project.
TransCanada Pipelines states they will try again with a new application. Even if a subsequent application is approved, it will mean a costly, massive delay in the project.
The full extent of the financial setback for TransCanada Pipelines is dependent on the reapplication process
Very few people think Keystone is dead, most say it's just delayed, and many of them aren't even surprised by the decision of the United States.
A lot of the talk throughout this project has been about the creation of jobs.
For critics of the project in Alberta, they believe that to be true but fear the created jobs will all be in the States.
The leader of Alberta's NDP party, Brian Mason, believes the decision will force the provincial and federal governments to rethink the pipeline.
"It's been designed for unprocessed bitumen, that means the jobs of Alberta go down the pipeline with it," says Brian Mason. "It creates jobs in Texas at the expense of Alberta."
As for the long term impact for Calgarians, the Chamber of Commerce says, for the time being, nobody is losing their job here.
The bigger concern is the message this decision sends to companies and countries who do business in Alberta.
"It doesn't help with the certainty and confine for business," says Ben Brunnen, a representative of the Calgary Chamber of Commerce. "The U.S.A. is our largest trading partner and when we see this decision start happening with major economic projects, it starts raising questions about whether we should diversify to different markets."
TransCanada says they're going to propose a new route for the pipeline and, if that eventually gets approved, the 20,000 estimated jobs across North America will be created.
Immediate reaction is one of disappointment in the decision but there is still a lot of optimism long term in the project itself.
The Obama administration said this decision was based on the timelines not on the merits of the project.
TransCanada is reapplying and is hoping to still build by the pipeline by 2014.
"I believe it's still alive and it's entirely possible for this project to succeed," says Alberta Premier Alison Redford. "We will support the project in any way possible to ensure it succeeds."
Prime Minister Harper again stated the need to diversify into other energy markets.
Industry members in Calgary are disappointed with the decision.
They see emerging oil markets in Asia, but believe the U.S. will continue to be the main recipient of oil exports.
