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A U.S. District Court today ordered the shut down and emptying of Energy Transfer's Dakota Access pipeline within 30 days.
Currently, the Dakota Access pipeline (DAPL) transports about 570,000 bbl/d from the Bakken to the Gulf Coast.
This comes days after Energy Transfer invoked force majeure in an effort to keep shippers from bailing on the planned expansion of the Dakota Access due to low commodity prices.
The U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia said in the ruling, stating: "Given the seriousness of the Corps' NEPA error, the impossibility of a simple fix, the fact that Dakota Access did assume much of its economic risk knowingly, and the potential harm each day the pipeline operates, the Court is forced to conclude that the flow of oil must cease."
Shut In Could Last 13 Months
"Preparing a thorough EIS could take about thirteen months, according to an estimate by the Army Corp. Without the order to shut down and empty the line, the Corps and Dakota Access would have little incentive to finish the EIS in a timely matter," the court said.
This ruling simple means that their will be a big push to use railcars to move oil out of the basins.
Shut-inAs of June 12, 2020, there were still 450,000 barrels of oil shut-in in the Bakken, according to the Bakken Restart task force.
Top Producers
The top oil producers in the bakken are Continental Resources, Hess, Whiting (bankrupt), Marathon and ConocoPhillips.
Bakken Takeaway Oil Capacity
Source : Enerplus via Shale Experts Presentation Database
Dakota Access Pipeline Map
Source : Energy Transfer
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