US: No formal Line 5 talks with Canada

A dispute between the state of Michigan and midstream company Enbridge over the 540,000 b/d Line 5 crude and natural gas liquids (NGLs) pipeline appears unlikely to be resolved through federal government negotiations and more likely to play out in US courts.

US secretary of state Tony Blinken has told Michigan governor Gretchen Whitmer "there is no formal bilateral process between the federal governments" of the US and Canada concerning Michigan's order to shut down Line 5, the State Department said today.

The State Department comments come despite intense lobbying from the Canadian government and its assertions that some meetings are taking place between US and Canadian officials on Michigan's efforts to shut the line. The embassy of Canada in Washington did not immediately respond to a request for comment today.

Line 5 stretches from Superior, Wisconsin, to Sarnia, Ontario, including a section under the Straits of Mackinac that separates Lake Michigan and Lake Huron. The state of Michigan last year moved to revoke Enbridge's 1953 easement to operate under the Straits, citing the danger of possible leaks.

Enbridge and Michigan expect to end a court-ordered mediation next month regarding the shut-down order. The company has kept the Line 5 system in service despite the Michigan order to shut the line by 12 May.

The Canadian government has been waging an aggressive lobbying effort to protect Line 5, with meetings at all levels of government and an appeal to the court.

Canada cited a 1977 treaty between the two countries in which they agreed "not to interfere with the operations of international hydrocarbon transit pipelines" absent specific justifications, according to court filings in the US District Court for the District of Western Michigan.

US and Canada officials are meeting bi-weekly to address the potential shutdown, including in the context of the 1977 treaty, according to a 21 June court filing.

In addition to the order to shut the line, the state filed a lawsuit in the Ingham County Circuit Court to back the move, citing "a grave and unreasonable risk to the state's residents and natural resources." Michigan alleges that Enbridge violated terms of the easement including one that limits spans of unsupported pipeline and another that mandates pipeline coatings.

Enbridge responded to Whitmer's revocation order saying it had no intention of shutting the Line 5 system based on the state's "unspecified allegations and its violation of federal law."

Enbridge is separately seeking to build a $500mn tunnel under the Straits of Mackinac to house part of Line 5 to bolster protections from anchor strikes and other damage.

President Joe Biden's administration last month decided to require a more exhaustive review of the tunnel project.

By Eunice Bridges