British Columbia Liberals won an upset in the Canadian province's elections, officials said Wednesday, raising hopes for a pipeline from Canada's oil sands to the Pacific Coast for shipping to Asia.

Premier Christy Clark, who has expressed tepid support for Enbridge's Northern Gateway project, was widely predicted to lose to the New Democrats, who fiercely opposed construction of the 1,177 kilometers (731 mile) pipeline.

But preliminary election results show the Liberals won 50 out of 85 seats in the provincial legislature, versus 33 for the New Democrats.

Clark lost her own seat, but one of her colleagues is expected to quickly step down to give her a second chance to re-enter the legislature in a by-election.

While Clark spoke against the pipeline prior to the election, she softened her position during the campaign, saying she simply wants a "fair share" of benefits for British Columbia, whereas the New Democrats vowed to block a pipeline deal.

New Democrat David Eby, who beat Clark by 785 votes in the electoral district of Vancouver-Point Grey, told public broadcaster CBC "the environment, the issue of the increase in tanker traffic off the coast and the Enbridge Northern Gateway pipeline project" were key issues for voters.

The Northern Gateway pipeline would bring oil from neighboring Alberta province's tar sands to a new marine terminal in Kitimat, British Columbia.

Up to 220 supertankers each year would take on oil from it, one report estimated, but aboriginals and environmentalists oppose the terminal, saying tanker traffic poses risks to a pristine coastline that includes salmon-bearing rivers and the habitat of a rare white bear.

The plan gained momentum after the United States initially rejected TransCanada's Keystone XL pipeline connecting the tar sands to Texas refineries.

The State Department is expected to make a final recommendation on the Keystone XL project to US President Barack Obama in the coming months.