TransCanada weighs next steps after U.S. court's Keystone pipeline ruling

(Reuters) - TransCanada Corp said on Thursday it is considering how to proceed with its Keystone XL pipeline, a day after a court voided the Nebraska governor's decision to allow the controversial line to pass through the Midwestern state.

"We are disappointed and disagree with the decision of the Nebraska district court and will now analyze the judgment and decide what NEXT (NXT.LO)steps may be taken," the company said in a statement. "Nebraska's attorney general has filed an appeal."

Canada's No. 2 pipeline operator also reported higher fourth-quarter earnings on strong results from its gas pipelines and higher volumes on its broader Keystone oil pipeline system. Shares were down 1 percent at C$49.39 shortly after trading opened on the Toronto Stock Exchange.

On Wednesday, the District Court of Lancaster County voided state approval of the Keystone XL pipeline project, siding with landowners who said legislation allowing the $5.4 billion line disregarded their property rights.

The move is expected to further delay the project, which has spent more than five years in regulatory limbo.

Supporters say the pipeline, which would transport crude from Alberta's oil sands to refineries on the U.S. Gulf Coast, would create thousands of jobs and cut U.S. fuel costs, while critics say it would harm the environment and hasten climate change by promoting expansion of Alberta's oil sands.

U.S. President Barack Obama will have the final say on the 1,179-mile (1,898-km) line, with that decision expected no sooner than May. TransCanada said it has so far invested $2.2 billion in the project.

The Calgary-based company's net income in the fourth quarter was C$420 million, or 59 Canadian cents per share, compared with C$306 million, or 43 Canadian cents per share, a year earlier.

Comparable earnings, which exclude one-time items, rose to C$410 million, or 58 Canadian cents per share, from C$318 million, or 45 Canadian cents per share.

Analysts on average expected net income of 59 Canadian cents per share, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

TransCanada also increased its quarterly dividend by 4 percent to 48 Canadian cents.

(Reporting by Julie Gordon; Editing by Lisa Von Ahn and Paul Simao)