Could meeting of Alberta and New Brunswick premiers signal progress for pipeline?

EDMONTON - As the Keystone XL and Northern Gateway pipeline projects remain stalled, meetings between Alberta Premier Alison Redford and her New Brunswick counterpart, David Alward, seem to be advancing the idea of a west to east pipeline.

After arriving in Alberta on Sunday, Premier Alward spent the next day touring the oil sands before sitting down with representatives from twenty oil companies, along with Alberta's leader. The topic on the agenda: an option to get Alberta's oil out of the country using an existing Trans-Canada natural gas pipeline. If the pipeline is converted to transport bitumen, some of it would be processed at the Irving refinery in Saint John, which is Canada's largest refinery.

"New Brunswick is open for business," said the eastern province's leader.

"We want to be able to have happen in New Brunswick is to be able to benefit from that same natural resource development as what's going on in Alberta, Saskatchewan, B.C., Newfoundland, and Labrador."

Premier Alward's own son has benefited from Alberta's economy, working as a pipefitter near Fort McMurray.

Bringing that development to New Brunswick is something all of its three major political parties agree on.

"If it didn't seem to make economic success, I don't think we'd see the interest that we have," said Premier Redford.

She adds that the lack of options to get Alberta's product to market is hurting more than just her province.

"We think it's in Canada's interest that we find a way to partner and find a way for all to benefit," she said. "The success for Alberta is not only success for Alberta but for economies across the country."

As for the other pipelines Alberta has in the works?

"For us it's not an either or proposition," Redford maintains. "We'll continue to have constructive discussions on everything: Keystone, Northern Gateway, support for Kinder Morgan, and also the East-West initiatives."

A pipeline going from Alberta to New Brunswick would require federal approval before it could be built.

With files from Quinn Ohler, Global News