Ottawa began regulatory hearings yesterday to determine whether to approve a $5.5 billion twin oil pipeline proposal by Enbridge Inc. . . . the pipeline, known as Northern Gateway, would carry crude oil from the Alberta oil sands to northwest British Colombia for export to Asia . . . the hearings will be held over the next 18 months by two federal environmental bodies . . . the project is expected to be completed by 2017, provided a federal review panel approves the pipeline by the end of 2013  . . . according to Enbridge, Northern Gateway is expected to add about $270 billion to Canada’s GDP . . . however continuing court battles could add as much as 30 percent to the total cost of the project for Enbridge  . . . the Northern Gateway Project has become more feasible following the delay of the Keystone XL project by the Obama administration . . . U.S. government . . . Canada will find a market for its oil despite U.S. delays and Asian markets are extremely energy hungry . . . the project will likely see protests by environmental groups and Aborigines in British Colombia that could disrupt the project.