Pipeline Shutdown: The Latest
By Samantha Oller on Sep. 21, 2016HELENA, Ala. -- Repairs continue this week to Line 1 of the Colonial Pipeline, which typically carries half of the 2.6 million barrels of refined products per day that the system ships from the Gulf to East coasts.
Following are the latest developments in the efforts to restart the pipeline and the repercussions on the Southeast.
Bypass opens
The government approved plans to restart Line 1 this Wednesday after Colonial Pipeline built an approximately 500-foot bypass line around the affected section. “Subsequent to restart, it is expected to take several days for the fuel delivery supply chain to return to normal,” Colonial said in a statement. “Some markets served by Colonial Pipeline may experience, or continue to experience, intermittent service interruptions.”
Supply makes its way
While work on the bypass is under way, some fuel supply has been making its way to the region via water. Between Sept. 9 and 15, waterborne shipments of gasoline increased 58% with volumes up 23% vs. the previous three weeks, according to data from Panjiva cited by Reuters.
In a Tuesday press conference, North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory said that his state is taking in only about one-third of its normal supply of fuel.
Outages continue
Reports of fuel outages across the Southeast continue. GasBuddy, which provides a crowdsourced fuel-price information app, recently added a Gasoline Availability Tracker feature allowing members to report fuel outages. According to the Boston-based company, North Carolina led with more than 770 reports of fuel outages, followed by Georgia at 61, South Carolina and Tennessee both at 30, and Alabama with three reports from GasBuddy users.
According to the Tennessee Fuel and Convenience Store Association, fuel sales at gas stations in the state are up 50% above average volumes for this time of the year because of panic buying.
N.C. investigates alleged price gouging
In North Carolina, more than 1,100 reports of possible price gouging have come into the attorney general’s office since last Friday. They cover the Triad, the Triangle, Charlotte, Asheville, Greenville and Wilmington markets.
Attorney General Roy Cooper (above) has issued subpoenas against five gas stations over potential price gouging. While the attorney general’s office has not released the names of the retailers, they include operators of three sites in Winston-Salem, Smithfield and Stokesdale, all accused of charging $3.99 or more for gasoline.
Earlier this week, a gas station and wholesaler in Guilford County received subpoenas asking for documentation on their costs. The station is alleged to have charged up to $4.50 per gallon for gasoline.
“A supply crunch shouldn’t be an excuse to rip off people who need gas,” Cooper said in a statement. “We’re following up on consumers’ reports and taking action to investigate possible price gouging.”
Other states on the lookout for gouging
This past Monday, Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal issued an executive order reminding fuel retailers of the illegality of price gouging. During states of emergency, gas stations can only raise prices based on the increased cost of transporting fuel.
And in Alabama, the attorney general told a local news station that it has gotten only a half-dozen complaints of price gouging. A viewer accused one Odenville, Ala., retailer of price gouging—alleging it was selling regular gasoline for $3.99 per gallon. It turns out the consumer mistook ethanol-free gasoline, or E0, for E10 on the price sign.
“It’s just awareness sometimes, some people don’t know,” said owner Al Naqvi.