Enbridge May Temporarily Shut Down U.S. Pipeline
19:07 GMT-04:00 Thursday, September 13, 2001
CALGARY, Alberta (Reuters) - Enbridge Inc. ,
which runs the main artery for Canadian oil
exports, said on Thursday it may shut down a
380,000-barrel-a-day pipeline in the United
States in the next few days after it discovered
soil erosion under one section in Michigan.
Enbridge's Houston-based affiliate, Enbridge
Energy Partners , formerly Lakehead Pipe Line
Partners, said it would conduct maintenance on
its Line 5, which carries light crude and gas
liquids 650 miles (1,046 km) to Sarnia, Ontario
from Superior, Wisconsin.
The company said it advised its shippers of the
possibility of an temporary unscheduled outage,
was also notifying regulators and public officials
near the site of the work, a crossing of the
Straits of Mackinac.
A recent inspection identified the loss of underlying support to some sections of the 30-inch pipeline
due to lake bed erosion, Enbridge said.
Line 5 is one of 17 lines that make up the 1.8-million-barrel-a-day Enbridge system, which is the
world's longest oil and liquids pipeline system and a key oil source for refiners in the U.S. Midwest
and southern Ontario. |
