U.S. pipeline regulatory officials will remain at the site of TransCanada Corp's Keystone crude oil pipeline spill in South Dakota until the line has been restarted, the agency said on Wednesday. Personnel will monitor the excavation and packaging of the damaged pipe section for testing, a spokesman for the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration said in an email. The investigation over the spill last week is ongoing, he added. (Reporting by Catherine Ngai; Editing by [Read more]
U.S. crude pares gains, but lingers near 2-year high
BOSTON (Reuters) - Oil pared gains on Wednesday after U.S. crude stockpiles fell less than an industry group’s expectations, but remained near a two-year high as the shutdown of one of the largest crude pipelines from Canada cut supply to the United States. The restart of the 590,000 barrel-per-day (bpd) Keystone pipeline shut last week due to a spill could take several weeks. Operator TransCanada Corp has told clients it will cut deliveries on the pipeline linking Alberta’s oil sands with [Read more]
S. Dakota regulators say they could revoke Keystone permit after spill
South Dakota regulators said on Tuesday they could revoke TransCanada Corp's permit to operate the Keystone crude oil pipeline in the state if an initial probe into last week's spill finds the company violated its license. Last week the Keystone system linking Alberta's oil sands with U.S. refineries spilled 5,000 barrels in rural northeastern South Dakota , days before neighboring Nebraska approved a proposed a route for the company's separate Keystone XL expansion [Read more]
U.S. State Department declines to say if new Keystone XL pipeline review needed
WASHINGTON, Nov 21 (Reuters) - The U.S. State Department on Tuesday declined to comment on whether Nebraska’s approval of an alternative route for the Keystone XL pipeline will trigger a new review by the department. “I think that’s something we can’t comment on because it’s all ... in the courts right now,” State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said at a news briefing. Nebraska regulators on Monday approved a route for TransCanada Corp’s Keystone XL pipeline through the state which [Read more]
Shareholders urge TransCanada to back Keystone XL despite risk
TransCanada Corp should push ahead with an $8 billion Keystone XL pipeline expansion after the state of Nebraska on Monday approved a route that would raise the cost of the controversial project, some shareholders said. The approval quashed the last regulatory hurdle for the nearly decade-old project, but the Nebraska Public Service Commission denied TransCanada's preferred route. That opened the door to potential delays and emboldened activists who said they would try to kill the project [Read more]
Oil steadies as caution sets in ahead of OPEC meeting
LONDON (Reuters) - Oil rose on Tuesday, supported by expectations of an extension next week to OPEC output cuts, but prices remained under pressure from signs of higher output in the United States. Brent crude oil was up 17 cents at $62.39 a barrel at 1452 GMT. U.S. light crude was at $56.72, up 30 cents. Analysts said Brent was expected to fluctuate in a narrow range, from $61 to $63, as the market awaited the outcome of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries’ meeting on [Read more]
Nebraska clears path for Keystone XL pipeline, challenges remain
Nebraska regulators approved a route for TransCanada Corp's Keystone XL pipeline through the state on Monday, removing a big regulatory obstacle for the long-delayed project backed by President Donald Trump, but leaving its future shrouded in legal and market uncertainty. The 3-2 vote by the Nebraska Public Service Commission helps clear the way for the pipeline linking Canada's Alberta oil sands to refineries in the United States. But opponents have promised to tie the project up [Read more]
TransCanada starts excavation work after South Dakota pipeline leak
Canada Corp has started initial excavation work at the site of an oil spill on its Keystone pipeline in South Dakota but has not yet pinpointed where the leak came from, a state official said on Monday. The 590,000 barrel per day Keystone pipeline, which links Alberta's oil sands to U.S. refineries, was shut down on Thursday after a 5,000 barrel spill. Calgary-based TransCanada is working through the clean-up process, said Brian Walsh, environmental scientist manager for the South Dakota [Read more]
U.S. State Dept. studying Keystone XL route for ‘permitting impacts’ -official
The U.S. State Department is looking into whether Nebraska's approval of an "alternative" route for TransCanada Corp's Keystone XL pipeline through the state will require additional federal permitting, a spokesperson said. "We have heard about a possible modified route, and we are in the process of gaining more precise information in order to determine if there will be any permitting impacts as a result of those changes," the spokesperson said, asking not to be named. (Reporting by Valerie [Read more]
Two Alberta oil sands upgraders warn customers of volume cuts -sources
Two oil sands upgraders in Alberta have warned customers about cuts to synthetic crude output in November because of upsets at the plants, market sources said on Monday. Shell Canada, a unit of Royal Dutch Shell , has told customers synthetic crude volumes from its 255,000-barrel-per-day Scotford, Alberta, upgrader may be reduced in November and potentially December, trading sources said on Monday. Shell told customers it took units at Scotford offline on Wednesday because of a valve leak [Read more]