A bid to expand the Keystone XL pipeline has been rejected by the Obama administration. President Obama released a written statement stating that the decision was not based on the merits of the pipeline but that the deadline set by Congress was of an “arbitrary nature”. The time deadline would not be sufficient for the State Department to be able to gather the information needed to approve the project. The rejection does not necessarily mean the end of the controversial pipeline project that has been met with mixed reviews, as the denial does not preclude any future permit applications.