Page 13 - NorthAmOil Week 26

NorthAmOil PIPELINES & TRANSPORT NorthAmOil

Line 5 splits into twin
pipelines to pass
through the Straits of
Mackinac.

Court allows Enbridge to

reopen portion of Line 5

MICHIGAN CANADA’S Enbridge has been given permis- Enbridge will now have to take its proposal
sion by a judge in Ingham County, Michigan, to for the Line 5 tunnel through the full hearing
reopen part of the damaged Line 5 in the Straits process – which will be held remotely owing
of Mackinac, where the system splits into twin to social distancing measures implemented as
pipelines. Under the July 1 ruling from Ing- a result of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pan-
ham County Circuit Court Judge James Jamo, demic. If the company receives all necessary
Enbridge will be able to resume flows through approvals on schedule, it anticipates complet-
the west leg of the system while it conducts an ing construction of the tunnel and replacement
in-line investigation on the east leg. pipeline in 2024.
This follows Jamo granting Michigan Attor- In the meantime, Enbridge it intends to The restart of
ney General Dana Nessel’s motion for a tem- restart the west leg operations and expects them
porary restraining order on June 25, requiring to return to normal soon, while it conducts an the west leg
Enbridge to suspend flows on Line 5 after the inspection on the east leg. The company has been
east leg of the pipeline suffered damage to a sup- ordered by Jamo to provide Michigan lawyers was good news
port a week earlier. with “all obtained data and all conclusions” from
The east leg will remain shut until the US the inspection within seven days of the west leg for integrated
Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety reopening. Canadian oil
Administration (PHMSA) completes its investi- Credit Suisse said in a note that the restart of
gations into the damage or until its reopening is the west leg was good news for integrated Cana- companies,
ordered by the court. dian oil companies, including Imperial Oil and
Nessel has been pushing through the courts Suncor Energy, which own refineries that are including Imperial
to shut down permanently the portion of the dependent on flows through Line 5. According
pipeline that passes through the Straits of Mack- to earlier Enbridge estimates, if Line 5 is shut, Oil and Suncor
inac, on fears that any leak would result in pollu- the refineries it serves in Michigan, Ohio, Penn- Energy.
tion in the Great Lakes. This comes as Enbridge sylvania, Ontario and Quebec would receive
is attempting to move forward with a proposal to about 45% less crude than their current level of
replace the 67-year-old twin pipelines that run demand.
through the Straits with a new single pipeline in At full capacity, Line 5 transports up to
a tunnel beneath them. However, the Michigan 540,000 barrels per day (bpd) of light crude and
Public Service Commission ruled this week that natural gas liquids (NGLs). The pipeline origi-
it would not fast-track the proposal through the nates in Superior, Wisconsin, and terminates in
regulatory approval process. Sarnia, Ontario.™

Week 26 02•July•2020 www. NEWSBASE .com P13