LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Nebraska Gov. Pete Ricketts is criticizing President Barack Obama’s decision to reject a permit for the Keystone XL oil pipeline.

Ricketts said in a statement Friday that the project would have created jobs and generated tax revenue for counties. The governor has said he supports the pipeline.

Ricketts says the decision was politically motivated, and contradicts the findings of earlier U.S. State Department research which concluded that pipeline wouldn’t have a major impact on greenhouse gases.

Nebraska has played a key role in the debate over the project because of strong opposition from landowners and activists who tried to block the pipeline.