CALGARY - TransCanada won't confirm a report in the Washington Post that it will reapply for its controversial Keystone XL pipeline as soon as Friday.

CEO Russ Girling said at TransCanada's annual general meeting last week that milestone is -- quote -- imminent.

Company spokesman Terry Cunha says that comment still stands, and no timeline has been set for TransCanada to apply for a new Presidential Permit.

The Obama administration rejected the US$7.6-billion project in its entirety earlier this year, though it left the door for TransCanada to take another crack at it.

The White House says the decision had less to do with the Alberta-to-Texas pipeline's merits than moves by Republicans in Congress to speed up the process.

TransCanada has since decided to go ahead with the southern portion of Keystone XL connecting Cushing, Okla., to the U.S. Gulf Coast, which does not require a presidential sign-off.