BISMARCK, N.D. — The operator of the Keystone oil pipeline restarted the system Monday after a spill onto farmland in North Dakota last week shut down the line.
South Bow said it was watching inclement weather conditions before beginning ''a carefully controlled restart'' that will include 24/7 monitoring, reduced operating pressures, cleanup of the site and compliance with federal regulators' requirements. The federal Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration said South Bow restarted the pipeline at a reduced pressure.
The failed section was dug out and replaced and will be taken to a metallurgical lab in Houston for testing, while the repaired pipeline will be tested at different pressures to ensure its integrity, PHMSA said.
The agency's investigation is ongoing. It is unclear what caused the spill.
The company said it has finished all repairs, inspections and testing at the spill site. PHMSA said it signed off on the company's restart plan.
South Bow also said it will put certain pressure restrictions on the pipeline's Canadian sections, and has shared those details with Canadian regulators.
The company's update did not mention a cause of the spill, though the company said it would share investigation findings when available. An employee heard a ''mechanical bang" and shut down the pipeline within two minutes, a state spill response official previously said.
The spill is estimated at 3,500 barrels, or 147,000 gallons. Vacuum trucks had recovered 1,170 barrels of crude oil, or 49,140 gallons, as of early Friday, according to PHMSA.
