Latest news with #Suess
Epoch Times
14-05-2025
- Business
- Epoch Times
Interior Department to Expedite Oil, Gas Leasing Process on Federal Lands
The Department of the Interior (DOI) unveiled its revised policy on May 13 aimed at accelerating the oil and gas leasing process on public lands as part of an effort to boost U.S. energy production. The revised policy will enable the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) to complete a parcel review process for oil and gas lease sales within six months from the start of scoping, the department said in a Once the parcels are reviewed, state offices will organize a lease sale and invite public participation. Previously, the BLM took between 8 and 15 months to complete the parcel review process. To expedite the leasing, the DOI stated that the BLM will conduct oil and gas lease parcel reviews while the National Energy Policy Act compliance process is being held, focusing on the existing land management policy and resource management plans. Adam Suess, acting assistant secretary for Land and Minerals Management, said the DOI is working to remove 'unnecessary delays' and 'bureaucratic roadblocks' that have hindered U.S. energy production 'for too long.' 'This policy puts us on a fast track to Energy Dominance—opening up more federal land for responsible development, cutting review times nearly in half, and sending a clear message that the United States is serious about job creation, low energy costs, and putting American energy first,' Suess said in a statement. Related Stories 4/19/2024 4/12/2024 The policy change follows President Donald Trump's Jan. 20 The order states that 'burdensome and ideologically motivated regulations' imposed under the previous administration have hindered the development of the country's energy resources, limited the generation of reliable and affordable electricity, reduced job creation, and led to high energy costs. 'It is thus in the national interest to unleash America's affordable and reliable energy and natural resources,' the order reads. 'It will also rebuild our Nation's economic and military security, which will deliver peace through strength.' Trump issued another Following that order, the DOI The 11th National Outer Continental Shelf Oil and Gas Leasing Program will add a new 'High Arctic' planning area off Alaska to the federal offshore leasing map for the first time. The boundaries of other coastal zones are also being revised—potentially clearing the way for oil and gas companies to tap into new reserves along the Atlantic, Pacific, and Arctic coasts. The DOI also Tom Ozimek contributed to this report.
USA Today
15-04-2025
- Business
- USA Today
Keystone pipeline restarted after oil spill near North Dakota community
Keystone pipeline restarted after oil spill near North Dakota community Show Caption Hide Caption Oil spills: Lasting impacts of some of the biggest in U.S. history Here are three of the most historic oil spills in U.S. history. Staff video, USA TODAY Pipeline operator South Bow restarted its Keystone oil pipeline system after a spill near a North Dakota community shut down the line for almost a week. The U.S. Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) announced on April 14 that South Bow restarted the pipeline at a reduced pressure. Earlier in the day, the company monitored inclement weather conditions before proceeding with the planned controlled restart. PHMSA approved the company's restart plan, but only under certain conditions spelled out in a corrective action order issued by the federal regulator on April 11. Several corrective actions in the order included the pressure restriction, mechanical and metallurgical testing of the failed pipe, and submission of a root cause analysis. The company, which is based in Calgary, Canada, has said it will also institute certain pressure restrictions on the Canadian section of the Keystone pipeline. The pipeline shut down on April 8 after an oil spill occurred near Fort Ransom, a community about 80 miles southwest of Fargo, North Dakota. In an update on April 14, PHMSA said the failed section of pipe was excavated and replaced. The failed pipe will be sent to a metallurgical lab in Houston for testing while the repaired line will be "tested at various pressures to confirm its integrity," according to PHMSA. "PHMSA investigators remain on site, and our investigation is ongoing," the regulator said in the update. "PHMSA will continue to monitor the operator's compliance with the (corrective action order)." 'We will not back down': Greenpeace ordered to pay more than $660M for Dakota Access Pipeline protests Keystone oil spill estimated at 3,500 barrels Bill Suess, spill investigation program manager with the North Dakota Department of Environmental Quality, told The Forum of Fargo-Moorhead that an employee heard a "mechanical bang" and shut down the pipeline within two minutes. Suess said the employee noticed oil surfacing in a nearby field. Following the incident, South Bow reported that it began a shutdown and response at about 7:42 a.m. local time on April 8 after "control centre leak detection systems detected a pressure drop in the system." The system was shut down at 7:44 a.m., the company said in a statement. The company noted that the affected segment was isolated and the release had been contained. The Keystone pipeline was pumping about 17,844 barrels of oil per hour when a part of the pipeline ruptured, spilling an estimated 3,500 barrels, or 147,000 gallons, onto agricultural land, according to Reuters. More: Why a pipeline project in Houston is raising concerns over environmental racism Federal regulator details pattern of spills from Keystone pipeline The Keystone pipeline spans nearly 2,700 miles and is a major channel for crude oil supply from Alberta, Canada, to U.S. refineries in Illinois, Oklahoma, and along the Gulf Coast. In the corrective action order issued by PHMSA, the regulator detailed previous leaks and spills from the Keystone pipeline. Between 2016 and 2022, PHMSA documented at least five accidents involving the Keystone pipeline. A 2021 report from the U.S. Government Accountability Office also found 22 spills from the pipeline between 2010 and 2020, according to Reuters. "The spills of 2016, 2017, 2019, 2020, and 2022, which resulted in reported releases of 400, 6,592, 4,515, 442, 12,937 barrels of crude oil, respectively, show a tendency or pattern in recent years of increasingly frequent incidents resulting in larger releases," the corrective action order states. PHMSA also noted that the April 8 rupture looked similar to another one on the same pipeline in North Dakota in 2019, in which about 4,515 barrels of crude oil were leaked. Initial findings of PHMSA's investigation showed that the failed pipe in both incidents was manufactured by the Berg Steel Pipe Corporation. Contributing: Chris Mueller, Sioux Falls Argus Leader; Reuters
Yahoo
09-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Keystone oil pipeline ruptures in North Dakota; spill under investigation
The Brief A Keystone Pipeline rupture was reported near Fort Ransom, North Dakota, around 7:44 a.m. The cause is unknown, but the pipeline shut down within two minutes. Oil was contained in a nearby field; the spill is under investigation. FORT RANSOM, N.D. - The Keystone oil pipeline ruptured Tuesday morning in North Dakota, with the spill confined to an agricultural field. What we know KVRR reported that the eruption happened near Fort Ransom, North Dakota around 7:44 a.m. local time. An employee working at the site near Fort Ransom heard a "mechanical bang" and shut down the pipeline within about two minutes, said Bill Suess, spill investigation program manager with the North Dakota Department of Environmental Quality. Oil was reported surfacing 300 yards (274 meters) south of the pump station in a field, Suess said. Emergency personnel responded to the site, Suess said. No people or structures were affected by the spill, he said. A nearby stream that only flows during part of the year was not impacted but was blocked off and isolated as a precaution, he said. What we don't know The cause of the rupture and the volume of crude oil spilled were not immediately unclear. It's unclear at what rate the 30-inch (0.8-meter) pipeline was flowing, but even at two minutes "it's going to have a fairly good volume," Suess said. "But ... we've had much, much bigger spills," including one involving the same pipeline a few years ago in Walsh County, North Dakota, he said. "I don't think it's going to be that huge," Suess said. What they're saying "At 7:44 this morning an employee on a pump station heard what was described as a mechanical bang," Suess said in a statement to FOX Television Stationsz. "He immediately shut down the pipeline and notified emergency personnel. The release is currently confined to an agricultural field south of the pump station." "There is an ephemeral stream nearby that has been isolated," he continued. "The stream has not been impacted." South Bow, a liquid pipeline business that manages the pipeline, said it shut down the pipeline after control center leak detection systems detected a pressure drop in the system. The spill is confined to an agricultural field. "The affected segment has been isolated, and operations and containment resources have been mobilized to site," the company said. "Our primary focus right now is the safety of onsite personnel and mitigating risk to the environment." What's next The size and cause of the spill are under investigation, according to the outlet. The backstory The Keystone Pipeline was constructed in 2010 at a cost of $5.2 billion and carries crude oil across Saskatchewan and Manitoba through North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas and Missouri to refineries in Illinois and Oklahoma. Though the pipeline was constructed by TC Energy, it is now managed by South Bow as of 2024. An extension of the pipeline, Keystone XL, was proposed in 2008. According to FOX News, the pipeline has been at the forefront of political debate since the project began construction in 2010, and was eventually halted by former President Barack Obama before it was finished. Trump revived it during his first term. However, former President Joe Biden ordered the pipeline cancelation via executive order on his first day in office in January 2021, leading to thousands of job losses. TC Energy, the operator of the Keystone XL pipeline, ultimately gave up on the project in June 2021 as a result of Biden's decision to cancel its federal permits. Then, in 2023, a federal judge tossed a legal challenge from nearly two dozen states asking the court to reinstate the pipeline's permits. The pipeline had been scheduled to be completed in early 2023 and would transport an additional 830,000 barrels of crude oil from Canada to the U.S. through an existing pipeline network, according to TC Energy. It was also projected to create thousands of jobs, many of which would have been union jobs. In January, Danielle Smith, the premier of Alberta, Canada, said that she was interested in talking to the Trump administration about potentially reopening the pipeline project. The Source FOX News and the Associated Press contributed to this report. The information in this story comes from local reports, including KVRR. This story was reported from Los Angeles.
The Independent
08-04-2025
- Business
- The Independent
Keystone oil pipeline shut down after a rupture in rural North Dakota
The nearly 2,700-mile Keystone oil pipeline was shut down Tuesday morning after it ruptured in North Dakota, halting the flow of thousands of gallons of crude oil from Canada to refineries in the U.S. South Bow, a liquid pipeline business that manages the pipeline, said it shut down the pipeline after control center leak detection systems detected a pressure drop in the system. The spill is confined to an agricultural field in a rural area, about 60 miles southwest of Fargo. 'The affected segment has been isolated, and operations and containment resources have been mobilized to site,' the company said. 'Our primary focus right now is the safety of onsite personnel and mitigating risk to the environment.' The pipeline transported an average 624,000 barrels per day in 2024, according to Canadian regulators. It stretches 2689 miles (4327 kilometers) from Albert, Canada, to Texas. It wasn't clear what caused the rupture of the underground pipeline or the amount of crude oil released into the field. An employee working at the site near Fort Ransom heard a 'mechanical bang' and shut down the pipeline within about two minutes, said Bill Suess, spill investigation program manager with the North Dakota Department of Environmental Quality. Oil surfaced about 300 yards (274 meters) south of the pump station in a field and emergency personnel responded, Suess said. No people or structures were affected by the spill, he said. A nearby stream that only flows during part of the year was not affected but was blocked off and isolated as a precaution, he said. The Pipelines and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration is sending a team to investigate the cause of the leak. Fort Ransom is in a hilly, forested area of southeastern North Dakota known for scenic views. It's unclear at what rate the 30-inch (0.8-meter) pipeline was flowing, but even at two minutes 'it's going to have a fairly good volume,' Suess said. 'But ... we've had much, much bigger spills,' including one involving the same pipeline a few years ago in Walsh County, North Dakota, he said. 'I don't think it's going to be that huge,' Suess said. The Keystone Pipeline was constructed in 2010 at a cost of $5.2 billion and carries crude oil across Saskatchewan and Manitoba through North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas and Missouri to refineries in Illinois, Oklahoma and Texas. Though the pipeline was constructed by TC Energy, it is now managed by South Bow as of 2024. A proposed extension to the pipeline called Keystone XL would have transported crude oil to refineries on the Gulf Coast, but it was ultimately abandoned by the company in 2021 after years of protests from environmental activists and Indigenous communities over environmental concerns. In December 2022, nearly 13,000 barrels of oil spilled from Keystone's line in Kansas into a creek traversing a pasture. An engineering consulting firm said the bend in the pipeline at the site had been 'overstressed' since being installed in 2010, likely because of construction activity altering the land around the pipe. TC Energy said a faulty weld in the line's bend caused a crack that exacerbated over time. ___ Raza reported from Sioux Falls, South Dakota. Associated Press writer Josh Funk contributed from Omaha, Nebraska.
New York Times
08-04-2025
- Business
- New York Times
Oil Spill in North Dakota Prompts Shut Down of Keystone Pipeline
The Keystone pipeline system, which carries crude oil from Canada to the United States, was shut down on Tuesday morning because of an oil spill in southeastern North Dakota, government and company officials said. The pipeline ruptured north of Fort Ransom, N.D., said Bill Suess, manager of the spill investigation program at the North Dakota Department of Environmental Quality, a state agency. The size and cause of the spill in that city, about 78 miles southwest of Fargo, were not known, he said, and the authorities had also not said when the pipeline could be back in operation. Mr. Suess said a pipeline employee who was working on a pump station heard a 'mechanical bang,' then reported the spill at 7:44 a.m. The pipeline was shut down in about two minutes, he said. 'As of right now, the spill is confined to an agricultural field south of the pump station,' Mr. Suess said. He said a nearby stream had been isolated as a precaution, but it had not been affected. The pipeline system stretches 2,687 miles. In 2024, it carried about 626,000 barrels of crude oil per day, according to South Bow, the infrastructure company that operates the pipeline. It was previously operated by TC Energy, the company behind the Keystone XL pipeline project, which planned on expanding the pipeline system but was opposed by environmentalists and Indigenous groups. The Keystone XL project was terminated by the company in 2021. South Bow was spun off from TC Energy in October 2024. Solomiya Lyaskovska, a spokeswoman for South Bow, said it had sent people and equipment to the rupture site. Ms. Lyaskovska said in an email that the shutdown came 'after control center leak detection systems detected a pressure drop in the system.' 'The affected segment has been isolated, and operations and containment resources have been mobilized to site,' she said. 'Our primary focus right now is the safety of on-site personnel and mitigating risk to the environment.' In December 2022, more than 500,000 gallons of crude oil spilled from the pipeline in Washington County, Kan. The pipeline's operator at the time, TC Energy, said in February 2023 that the spill was caused by 'bending stress' on the pipe and a 'weld flaw.' In October 2019, the pipeline leaked about 383,000 gallons of crude oil in Edinburg, N.D., about 155 miles north of Fort Ransom. State environmental regulators said that the spill covered an estimated half-acre of wetland.
