Lugar Commends Indiana Jobs from Keystone XL Pipeline

Press Release

Today Senator Dick Lugar (R-Ind.) congratulated Koontz-Wagner of South Bend, Indiana for finishing the last of 78 equipment shelters for installation with the proposed Keystone XL pipeline.

"As a major private infrastructure project, the Keystone XL pipeline will support jobs both in construction and throughout the supply chain. Indiana's skilled workers and manufacturing expertise makes it an obvious partner for the current and future projects," Lugar said.

Mark Hayes, a native of near-by Plymouth, Indiana and Director of Lugar's Indiana Senate offices attended the Koontz-Wagner celebration in South Bend on Tuesday. Senator Lugar was in Washington that day working to override President Obama's rejection of the project.

Koontz-Wagner, which is a subcontractor for Siemens on this project, builds equipment shelters at its location in South Bend. The largest of them measures 62 feet long, 14 feet wide, and weighs about 8,500 pounds. Manufacture of the 78 units for Keystone XL generated 140,000 "man hours" of work, allowing them to hire 50-60 employees. It is the single largest contract for the South Bend company.

"The people of Koontz-Wagner and South Bend deserve to be proud of this milestone," Lugar said. "Koontz-Wagner is fortunate that they are an early contractor, so their workers are already benefiting. Meanwhile, thousands of additional workers are waiting for their chance. Realizing the full private job-creation potential of the Keystone XL pipeline will require that the project be permitted -- something that President Obama has failed to do. That is why I am leading Senate efforts to get the Federal government out of the way of the Keystone XL pipeline."

Other Indiana firms stand to benefit from the Keystone XL pipeline. Senator Lugar has visited Endress+Hauser in Greenwood where they already have manufactured $600,000 worth of flow and temperature devices, Caterpillar in Lafayette where they manufacture the engines for the heavy equipment hauling the oil sands, and Fairfield Manufacturing in Lafayette where they manufacture large gears and other components of the Caterpillar machines, in addition to other industrial machinery.

Earlier this month, California Congressman Henry Waxman called into question the benefits of Keystone XL pipeline construction for Indiana. In response, Senator Lugar explained Indiana's important role in manufacturing through the supply chain, and pointed out that all Americans will benefit from secure and reliable oil resources from Indiana's largest foreign trading partner Canada.

Lugar is a principle author of legislation to override President Obama's rejection of the Keystone XL pipeline. The Hoeven-Lugar-Vitter bill is currently pending in the Senate.

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