---
title: "Fort McMurray prepares for oil boom as pipeline decision nears"
description: "Rising home prices and hiring precede an expected federal declaration that a West Coast pipeline is in the national interest"
author: "rews desk"
published: 2026-09-30T08:00:00Z
modified: 2026-09-30T09:11:22Z
url: https://rews.cc/a/fort-mcmurray-prepares-for-oil-boom-as-pipeline-decision-nea-31a626
language: en
tags: ["oil", "infrastructure", "economy", "energy", "housing", "us"]
publisher: "Rews (https://rews.cc)"
---

# Fort McMurray prepares for oil boom as pipeline decision nears

*Rising home prices and hiring precede an expected federal declaration that a West Coast pipeline is in the national interest*

By rews desk · September 30, 2026 · https://rews.cc/a/fort-mcmurray-prepares-for-oil-boom-as-pipeline-decision-nea-31a626

## In brief

- Fort McMurray shows signs of growth ahead of an expected federal declaration that a West Coast oil pipeline is in the national interest
- The Alberta government aims to double oilsands production to eight million barrels per day by 2035
- Housing demand rose about 30% this summer and the population is at an all-time high, CBC reported
- Residents want controlled growth after past booms strained housing, schools and services
- Locals continue to push for the $1.5-billion East Clearwater Highway, a second route out of the community

Fort McMurray, the Alberta community at the centre of Canada’s oilsands, is showing signs of renewed economic growth as it awaits a federal decision on a proposed oil pipeline to the West Coast, CBC reported.

On Thursday, the federal government is expected to declare the pipeline project, proposed by the Alberta government, to be in the national interest. The Alberta government aims to double oilsands production to eight million barrels per day by 2035.

Home prices are rising, oilsands investment and hiring are increasing, and the local population has reached an all-time high after a decade of decline, according to CBC.

“It’s been very doom and gloom here since 2015,” said Kyle Vandecasteyen, a councillor with the Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo. “We’re ready for growth.”

Roofer William Gilbert, whose 20 employees are working at capacity, said he expects steady hiring in the coming years. “I see us doubling, if not tripling,” he said. “We’re slowly getting a boom.”

Over the past 12 months, federal and provincial announcements aimed at increasing oil production have fed the optimism, CBC reported. The federal government has removed policies including the oilpatch emissions cap, accelerated regulatory approval for major projects and introduced new financial incentives for investors.

Some construction crews have seen work triple, said Dianna De Sousa, president of the local chamber of commerce. “It’s organized chaos. They have to turn away work,” she said, adding that labour supply will be the main challenge. The local college is trying to expand training but is struggling to find enough instructors, said Shane Ganong, a heavy-duty mechanic and instructor at Keyano College.

Housing demand rose about 30 per cent this summer compared with last year, said realtor Paige Cyr. Prices are rising, though some houses still sell for $200,000 below what buyers paid 10 or 15 years ago, she said.

Community leaders say they want a slower, more controlled expansion than past booms brought. Previous booms drew workers from across Canada with the country’s highest wages, leaving too few houses, daycares and schools, and busts left many residents owing more on mortgages than their homes were worth, said Kris Yarish, chief operating officer of Alcor Facilities Management, which has operated in Fort McMurray for more than 50 years.

Yarish said the pipeline has lifted industry confidence but cautioned that a boom is not guaranteed. Large oilsands companies have been reluctant to spend tens of billions of dollars on megaprojects, the last of which was completed in 2018, and investors now favour cash returns and share buybacks over growth. Consolidation has also left only a handful of major producers, and a trade war with the United States and volatile global oil prices add uncertainty, he said.

The municipality has used the quiet decade to invest in sewers, water, roads and flood protection along the riverbank. Some residents continue to push for the $1.5-billion East Clearwater Highway, a second road out of the community proposed after the 2016 wildfire exposed Fort McMurray’s single highway exit.

Marty Giles of NorthStar Ford, whose dealership sells about 1,200 F-Series trucks a year, is hiring 30 more workers to bring staffing to about 300. “I haven’t seen this much optimism actually in Fort McMurray for the last decade as I do today,” he said.