Colonial temporarily shuts down part of NC pipeline after Hurricane Ida makes landfall
UPDATE (5 p.m., Monday): Colonial Pipeline Co. expects to return the two lines to service on Monday evening, pending successful completion of “restart protocols,” the company said in a 4 p.m. post on its website.
Colonial Pipeline Co. temporarily shut down two fuel lines that run through parts of the Carolinas, including Charlotte, as Hurricane Ida pummeled the Gulf Coast on Sunday. However, the company assured consumers the move was just a precaution.
It’s at least the second time this year that Colonial’s fuel lines have been turned off. In May, a ransomware attack paralyzed the system, prompting a panic that led to long lines, outages and higher prices at gas stations across the Southeast.
“Fuel supply continues to be available throughout the southeast from the numerous terminals located along the supply route,” Colonial said in a statement on its website Sunday.
Colonial shut down Lines 1 and 2 from Houston to Greensboro as “a precautionary and routine safety measure,” the company said. Two other lines that serve areas from Greensboro to Linden, New Jersey, continued normal operations, Colonial said.
“Colonial expects operations to resume full service following evaluation of infrastructure and successful execution of the company’s startup plan,” the Alpharetta, Georgia-based company said.
It’s unclear how the shutdown will affect U.S. fuel supplies. Government statistics, according to S&P Global Platts, show that 95% of oil and gas production in the Gulf Coast region was shut down because of Ida, AP reported.
At least one industry analyst expects drivers to see slightly higher prices at the pump over the next two weeks.
Ida, a Category 4 storm with winds of 150 mph, made landfall early Sunday afternoon near the barrier isle of Grand Isle along the Louisiana coast, The Associated Press reported. That’s about 45 miles west of where Category 3 Katrina first struck land on the same date 16 years ago.
As of 8 p.m. Sunday, Ida had weakened to a Category 3 storm as it moved toward the New Orleans area.
GasBuddy expert: Shutdown ‘not uncommon’
The temporary shutdown came as no surprise to one fuel industry analyst.
“This is not uncommon,” Patrick De Haan, oil and refined products analyst for GasBuddy.com, said in a tweet. “Once the storm passes, damage assessments will be made and I would expect a quick return to service.”
De Haan doesn’t expect prices to rise substantially.
“Many people apparently concerned about #gasprices absolutely skyrocketing,” he said in an earlier tweet. “To those, I say this: there is 0% chance that the national average rises to some of those apocalyptical figures. No to a *national average* of $3.50. No to $4. No to $5. It’s just not in the cards.”
On average, drivers in the U.S. paid an average of $3.148 for a gallon of regular unleaded gas on Sunday, according to AAA. In North Carolina, the average price statewide was $2.887, $2.864 in Charlotte, $2.898 in Raleigh, and $2.94 in Durham.
Colonial’s 5,500-mile pipeline carries nearly half of the fuel to the Southeast and the East Coast, the Observer previously reported.
In Charlotte, the pipeline passes through Tank Town, a cluster of petroleum tank farms in the Paw Creek neighborhood. The smaller Plantation Pipeline also operates in Tank Town.
Colonial ransomware shutdown
A criminal group of hackers attacked Colonial Pipeline in May, forcing the company to shut down its fuel lines. A month later, Colonial CEO Joseph Blount Jr. told Congress the company paid a $5 million ransom, of which U.S. law enforcement officials recovered nearly half, CNBC has reported.
North Carolina Attorney General Josh Stein has filed at least two lawsuits for price gouging during the shutdown, including one against a Charlotte gas station that appeared in a viral TikTok video for charging $9.99 per gallon of mid-grade and premium gas.
State law prohibits businesses from excessively raising prices during a crisis and goes into effect when the governor declares a state of emergency, which Gov. Roy Cooper did on May 10.
This story was originally published August 29, 2021 at 5:48 PM.