Enbridge Energy Uncertain on Restart of Pipeline in Wisconsin

Enbridge Energy Partners LP (EEP) said it remains uncertain how soon it can restart a pipeline that released about 1,200 barrels of crude oil in Wisconsin yesterday.

Officials from the Transportation Department’s Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration are leading an investigation on site, said Lorraine Little, a spokeswoman for Enbridge, in a telephone interview. She said it’s “too early” to estimate when the line will be back in service.

The leak was on Line 14 near Grand Marsh, Wisconsin, about 60 miles north of the state capital of Madison. Enbridge said in a statement the pipeline has a capacity of 317,600 barrels a day, and the light crude oil from it goes mainly to Chicago-area refineries. The line was installed in 1998.

The cause of the leak has yet to be determined, Little said. She said it’s unlikely the volume of the leak will exceed the initial estimate of 1,200 barrels.

Enbridge said the oil was contained mostly on the pipeline’s right-of-way.

To contact the reporter on this story: Mina Kawai in New York at minkawai@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Sylvia Wier at swier@bloomberg.net