TransCanada Corp. (NYSE: TRP, TO: TRP), the Calgary, Alberta-based company that has been trying to build the Keystone XL pipeline since 2008, applied for a CA$12 billion (US$10.7 billion) link between Alberta’s oil sands and Canada’s Atlantic Coast, Bloomberg said Oct. 30.

The 4,600-kilometer (2,859-mile) Energy East line, the largest proposed oil conduit in North America, would stay within Canada, carrying as much as 1.1 million barrels a day (MMbbl/d) to eastern refineries and marine terminals in Quebec and New Brunswick, according to a statement that day. Canada’s National Energy Board has 15 months to review the project and make a recommendation to the cabinet of Prime Minister Stephen Harper.

Keystone XL, which requires approval by the U.S., has emerged as a lightning rod for environmental groups. President Barack Obama rejected TransCanada’s initial application in 2012. Other possible routes such as the Northern Gateway project and the expansion of the Trans Mountain line face delays as oil-sands opponents and landowners fearful of spills have stalled regulatory reviews.

“We have been out in the field for more than 18 months gathering data, performing environmental studies and engaging with Aboriginal and stakeholder groups in the initial design and planning of the project,” TransCanada’s CEO, Russ Girling, said in the statement.

Energy East is one of four major pipeline projects proposed to ship rising oil-sands output largely landlocked in Alberta to the Pacific, Atlantic and Gulf coasts as producers seek new markets and higher prices for Canadian crude.

TransCanada, the second-largest Canadian pipeline company, is planning to convert portions of its existing natural gas mainline to carry crude and lay new pipe to build Energy East, which is expected to begin taking oil in 2018.

While Energy East has faced opposition from advocacy groups like Equiterre in Quebec, TransCanada has won support from communities along the route by negotiating with landowners and politicians and making changes to plans ahead of its regulatory filing, Girling said in a May interview.

Fearing supply shortfalls to heat homes and fuel power plants in Quebec and Ontario, gas distributors have spoken out against Energy East because of TransCanada’s plan to switch part of its pipeline to oil and charge tolls for a replacement pipeline. Quebec’s Gaz Metro, Enbridge Inc.’s (NYSE: ENB, TO: ENB) Toronto-based Enbridge Gas Distribution and Spectra Energy Corp.’s (NYSE: SE) Union Gas in Chatham, Ontario, are among distributors opposing the project, saying it could raise prices for consumers.

The Eastern Mainline proposed by TransCanada to replace the portion that will be converted to oil in Ontario would include a new segment as long as 250 kilometers.

The application comes six years after TransCanada first sought U.S. approval to build Keystone XL to link the oil sands to the Gulf Coast, the largest refining center in the world. Unlike Keystone XL, Energy East doesn’t enter U.S. territory.

The U.S. State Department, which has jurisdiction over pipelines that cross the country’s borders, is awaiting the outcome of a court case in Nebraska to rule on the Keystone XL project, which Girling said might cost as much as $10 billion. TransCanada split the project in two to build the southern portion first and reapplied for the northern leg in 2012 after Obama rejected the project.

Canadian heavy oil prices have come under pressure because of transportation bottlenecks, plummeting to $42.50/bbl less than the U.S. benchmark in December 2012. The discount has narrowed to $14/bbl Oct. 29 as new U.S. pipeline capacity to the Gulf Coast eases some congestion and producers increasingly turn to trains to move their crude.

Canadian exports of oil by rail surged 10-fold to about 163,000 bbl/d in the three months ending June 30 from the first three months of 2012, according to National Energy Board data. Shipments by rail from western Canada are forecast by the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers to reach about 700,000 bbl/d by 2016.

Energy East is the largest of about CA$39 billion in projects backed by contracts that TransCanada is planning.

Enbridge Inc. is Canada’s biggest pipeline company by market value.

The announcement was made before the start of regular trading on North American markets. TransCanada gained 0.3% to CA$55.30 at 8:16 a.m. in Toronto.