TransCanada Corp. will file an application with the Nebraska Public Service Commission (PSC) to seek approval for the Keystone XL Pipeline’s route through the state, the company said Sept. 30.

TransCanada is also currently withdrawing its eminent domain actions and taking steps to terminate constitutional court proceedings in Holt County, Neb.

Keystone XL is a 1,179-mile pipeline from Hardisty, Alberta, to Steele City, Neb., that will transport Canadian and U.S. Bakken oil to U.S. markets.

"After careful review, we believe that going through the PSC process is the clearest path to achieving route certainty for the Keystone XL Project in Nebraska," said Russ Girling, president and CEO. "It ultimately saves time, reduces conflict with those who oppose the project and sets clear rules for approval of the route."

The proposed route was evaluated by the Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality and approved by the state’s governor in 2013.

This route is also the preferred route of the majority of Nebraskans who participated in a thorough comment period that included open-house discussions and allowed for hundreds of additional comments, the company said. The review also included conversations with landowners along the pipeline corridor, 91% of whom signed voluntary easements to construct Keystone XL.

The project has undergone five independent reviews of safety and potential environmental impacts by the State Department, and also one authored by the State of Nebraska after its year-long public process, TransCanada said. All reviews concluded the project could be constructed and operated safely with minimal environmental impact.

TransCanada Corp. is based in Calgary, Alberta.