Washington (Platts)--1May2014/154 pm EDT/1754 GMT

The US Senate is expected to vote next week on a new bill which would approve the controversial and long-delayed Keystone XL crude oil pipeline without a presidential permit, Senate aides said Thursday.

Senators Mary Landrieu, a Louisiana Democrat and chairman of the Energy and Natural Resources Committee, and John Hoeven, a North Dakota Republican, on Thursday introduced the latest bill to approve Keystone XL under congressional authority, rather than by presidential permit.

The Obama administration last month said it was delaying a decision on the pipeline as it awaits the outcome of a Nebraska Supreme Court case over the pipeline's route through the state.

The new Senate bill was backed by 56 senators Thursday, including all 45 Republican senators, and Hoeven said he and Landrieu were working to get the four more senators needed to pass the bill. The bill would need 67 votes to override a likely White House veto, however.

A similar bill was passed in the Republican-controlled House by a 241-175 vote nearly a year ago.

Senate aides, who spoke on the condition they not be identified, said the bill will likely be voted on next week, potentially ahead of a vote on a bipartisan energy-efficiency bill.

The Keystone XL pipeline, which faces environmental opposition, would carry Canadian oil sands crude from Alberta to Nebraska, where it would link to other pipelines for delivery to US Gulf Coast refineries.

--Brian Scheid, brian.scheid@platts.com
--Edited by Derek Sands, derek.sands@platts.com

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