Colonial Pipeline shuts main gasoline artery after potential gasoline spill

By Nicole Jao and Shariq Khan

NEW YORK (Reuters) -Colonial Pipeline, the largest U.S. fuel pipeline operator, said on Tuesday that the main artery moving gasoline from the U.S. Gulf Coast to the East Coast has been shut since Monday night due to a potential spill in Paulding County, Georgia.

Line 1 was temporarily shut as operator Colonial Pipeline responds to a potential gasoline release, a company spokesperson said. Crews were on scene in Paulding, Georgia, to coordinate response efforts, they added.

Line 1 moves around 1.5 million barrels of gasoline each day from Houston, Texas, to storage tanks in Greensboro, North Carolina, from where it is distributed locally or pumped to other Northeastern markets all the way to the New York Harbor. It is one of two mainlines on the more than 5,500-mile Colonial pipeline system.

U.S. gasoline traders widely cited expectations for Line 1 to restart later on Tuesday night, lowering the chances of a major disruption in fuel supplies.

“The timeline sounds on par with a best case outcome,” Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy said, adding that it suggests a minor leak and minimal environmental mitigation.

Colonial Pipeline declined to provide a restart timeline.

Gasoline futures rose 0.43 cents to settle at $2.1046 a gallon on Tuesday, bucking weakness in the broader oil complex. [O/R]

The U.S. Department of Transportation Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Paulding County Sheriff’s Office said there was no notification to 911 regarding a gasoline leak.