Enbridge Wins Commission Sign Off on Great Lakes Tunnel

Enbridge storage tanks and pipelines in Hardisty, Alberta, Canada, on Thursday, April 27, 2023. The company’s proposed pipeline tunnel under Michigan’s Straits of Mackinac was approved by a key commission. — Enbridge storage tanks and pipelines in Hardisty, Alberta, Canada, on Thursday, April 27, 2023. The company’s proposed pipeline tunnel under Michigan’s Straits of Mackinac was approved by a key commission.
Photographer: Jason Franson/Bloomberg

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By Robert Tuttle

December 1, 2023 at 7:55 PM UTC

Updated on

December 1, 2023 at 8:12 PM UTC

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Enbridge Inc. proposed pipeline tunnel under Michigan’s Straits of Mackinac was approved by a key commission, a win for the company amid a long-running dispute with the state’s governor over the conduit’s future.

The Michigan Public Service Commission approved the company’s application to build a tunnel under the channel that connects Lakes Michigan and Huron. The tunnel would house the company’s Line 5 oil pipeline, which currently rests on the lakebed. Enbridge argues the tunnel will reduce risks of an oil spill but Governor Gretchen Whitmer issued an order to shut the line.