BILLINGS, Mont. — The company behind the Keystone XL crude oil pipeline said Wednesday it is scrapping the controversial project after President Joe Biden canceled its border-crossing permit on his first day in office.

Calgary, Canada-based TC Energy said it would work with government agencies "to ensure a safe termination of and exit from" the partially-built pipeline.

The pipeline was to transport crude from the oil sand fields of western Canada to Steele City, Nebraska.

The project had stalled under the Obama administration, and construction on the 1,200-mile pipeline started in 2020 under the Trump administration.

On January 20, Biden canceled the permit for the project, citing concerns that burning oil sands crude makes climate change worse.

Canadian officials failed to persuade the Biden administration to reverse the cancellation.

Attorneys general from more than 20 states had sued in an effort to overturn Biden's cancellation of the permit, saying the construction of the pipeline would have created thousands of jobs.