Environmental and indigenous groups are cheering after Kinder Morgan announced Sunday it was halting most work on its controversial Trans Mountain expansion pipeline project, citing continuing opposition.

“This is a sign that organizing works, and it could well be the beginning of the end for this dangerous pipeline,” declared Clayton Thomas-Muller, a Stop-it-at-the-Source campaigner with 350.org.

“This is huge,” added British Columbia-based advocacy group Dogwood.

In the company’s statement announcing the move, chairman and CEO Steve Kean said Kinder Morgan was suspending “all non-essential activities and related spending” as a result of the “current environment” that puts shareholders at risk.

“A company cannot resolve differences between governments,” he added, referencing resistance from B.C. lawmakers that is at odds with support for the project coming from Ottawa and neighboring Alberta. “While we have succeeded in all legal challenges to date, a company cannot litigate its way to an in-service pipeline amidst jurisdictional differences between governments,” Kean said.

Unless legal agreements are reached by May 31, Kean said that “it is difficult to conceive of any scenario in which we would proceed with the project.” (There are still 18 pending court cases that could thwart the project, the Wilderness Committee notes.)

B.C. Premier John Horgan, for his part, said in a statement Sunday, “The federal process failed to consider B.C.’s interests and the risk to our province. We joined the federal challenge, started by others, to make that point.”

“We believe we need to grow the economy, while protecting the environment. We want to work to address these challenges together. But we will always stand up for British Columbians, our environment, and the thousands of jobs that depend on our coast.”

Stopping the fossil fuel project, though would reap benefits beyond the two provinces the pipeline runs through, as author and climate campaigner Bill McKibben noted: