Enbridge Energy Partners LP received approval from the Michigan Public Service Commission (MPSC) to construct and operate a replacement to its Line 6B pipeline running between Griffith, Ind., and Marysville, Mich. The project consists of 110 miles of 36-in. OD pipeline and 50 miles of 30-in. OD pipeline, all of which replace certain 30-in. OD segments of its existing crude oil and petroleum pipeline.
The company was authorized to replace, design, construct, install, test, operate, maintain, repair, and own the replaced segments of its Line 6B project described in its Apr. 16, 2012, application and to install new facilities at existing station sites at Niles, Mendon, Stockbridge, Howell, Ortonville, and St. Clair (Marysville) stations, for the transportation of crude oil and petroleum.
MPSC said the pipeline will serve a public need, is designed and routed in a reasonable manner, and meets or exceeds current safety and engineering standards. Within 60 days of completing construction, Enbridge will submit "as built" maps to the commission.
The US National Transportation Safety Board last year ascribed Line 6B’s 2010 failure and spill of 840,000 gal of crude into Talmadge Creek and the Kalamazoo River to pervasive organizational failures at Enbridge combined with weak federal regulations (OGJ Online, July 11, 2012).
Contact Christopher E. Smith at [email protected].