Energy Dept. Ready to Tap Emergency Oil
BP’s Largest Oil Field Shut Down – 400,000 Barrels Per Day
By H. JOSEF HEBERTAssociated Press Writer
WASHINGTON
Source: Alaska Forum
The Energy Department is prepared to provide oil from the government’s emergency supplies if a refinery requests it because of the disruption of supplies from Alaska, a department spokesman said Monday.
Oil transit pipelines, including the one that led to a partial shutdown of the country’s largest oil field, would have to be regularly cleaned and checked for thin spots and leaks under a federal proposal issued Thursday.
The “low-stress” lines in rural areas are largely unregulated.
The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration has been working on a plan for several years to regulate the low-pressure lines. The agency sped up the process after two Prudhoe Bay transit lines leaked in March and August, said PHMSA Administrator Thomas Barrett.
