Enbridge restarting Line 5 pipeline in Michigan

Houston — Enbridge said it is restarting the eastern leg of its Line 5 crude and NGL pipeline system in Michigan after damage was detected in June to an anchor support system.

The US Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration and a Michigan court authorized the resumption of pipeline operations after roughly 80 days of downtime during which Enbridge conducted a full review and made repairs. The unharmed western leg of the pipeline system has been back in operation since July.

The 67-year-old pipeline, which Enbridge is proposing to replace as part of a hotly debated project, helps transport up to 540,000 b/d of NGLs, including propane for home heating and crude from Western Canada to various US hubs and Eastern Canada. The 645-mile line stretches from Wisconsin through Michigan and into Ontario and is part of Enbridge's larger Mainline and Lakehead systems.

The damaged portion of the pipeline was along the Great Lakes' Straits of Mackinac, where Enbridge relies on two parallel 20-inch pipelines that stretch nearly 5 miles across the lakebed.

"The decision to allow the restart of the east segment of Line 5 is very positive for the many residents and businesses in Michigan and the Great Lakes region who depend on the energy Line 5 delivers," said Enbridge Executive Vice President Vern Yu in a statement."Enbridge will continue to focus on the safe operation of the dual Line 5 pipelines at the Straits of Mackinac, ensuring the Great Lakes are protected while also reliably delivering the energy and feedstock that helps to fuel Michigan's and the region's economy."

Despite the pipeline project's support from the previous gubernatorial administration in Michigan, Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and Attorney General Dana Nessel have opposed the pipeline in its entirety for safety and environmental reasons, wanting the current pipeline closed and the replacement project rejected.

The energy investment firm Tudor, Pickering, Holt & Co. said in an analyst note that Enbridge's Line 5 restart announcement is "largely informational with no trading impact expect." The bigger issue is the ongoing court fight that could be concluded later this year as Whitmer and Nessel push for a full shutdown of the pipeline, the investment firm added.

Enbridge has continued to argue that the pipeline is safe and that Line 5 is critical to the entire region, highlighting Michigan's reliance on the pipeline for its propane for heating oil, and its crude oil to supply gasoline, diesel and jet fuel in the state.

Replacement project in doubt

Despite the opposition to the pipeline's operation, Enbridge is still pushing forward with its plans for the Line 5 replacement project.

The Michigan Public Service Commission on June 30 voted 3-0 to deny Enbridge's April permit application to begin new construction on the Line 5 replacement project that would require building a tunnel and pipeline under the Straits of Mackinac.

Instead of allowing a fast-tracked construction process, the commission ordered a full hearing and review process, arguing the new pipeline replacement is substantially different than the initial pipeline system built decades ago.

The permit applications to the state of Michigan and the US Army Corps of Engineers came after Whitmer and Nessel sued last year to decommission the pipeline over concerns a leak could cause devastating environmental damage to the Great Lakes.

There's been greater scrutiny of Enbridge in Michigan since the significant 2010 oil spill from a separate Enbridge pipeline along the Kalamazoo River.

Enbridge proposes replacing the dual pipelines for a stretch with a single 30-inch pipeline housed in a concrete-lined tunnel up to 250 feet beneath the lakebed under the Straits of Mackinac.

Enbridge has maintained it is prepared for a full review process to complete the project, including the nearly 4-mile tunnel segment under the Straits of Mackinac, by 2024.