ST. PAUL — Republican lawmakers advanced legislation Thursday that would allow a Canadian energy company to bypass regulatory hurdles and build a $7.5 billion replacement for an existing oil pipeline in Minnesota.

It was part of a larger jobs and energy bill that also passed largely along party lines by a vote of 76-55. Debate over the Enbridge Energy pipeline amendment lasted several hours as Democrats tried to block the provision, citing issues with American Indian treaty conflicts, the environment and the precedent set by side-stepping the state’s regulator, the Public Utilities Commission.

The commission is considering a number of alternative routes, but the amendment allows Enbridge to use its preferred route.

The pipeline currently runs 1,097 miles from Alberta, Canada, clips the northeast corner of North Dakota and traverses northern Minnesota on its way to Superior, Wisconsin. The preferred replacement line would closely follow the route of the old pipeline, with a few changes in Minnesota that attempt to skirt American Indian land. But the tribes still oppose the new route because they say it would cross treaty land even if not the reservation.

Opponents said the northern Minnesota portion of the route is full of trees and water that is susceptible to major damage from an oil spill. The area is also home to waters where Ojibwe bands harvest wild rice and a number of American Indian protesters were at the Capitol earlier in the day to rally against the bill.

Comparisons are already being drawn with the Dakota Access and Keystone pipelines, which prompted strong protests including a camp of demonstrators in North Dakota for months.