'No need to panic' about pipeline shutdown in Manitoba, gas expert says

A gas industry expert says Manitobans needn't panic about a fuel shortage or fear a price hike due to the temporary shutdown of a pipeline to Winnipeg.

"The disruption here in Manitoba won't necessarily have a price implication. It may very well see a lot of trucks and rail scrambling to make sure there's enough product into the market, but it's not likely to lead to any price considerations," said Dan McTeague, president of Canadians for Affordable Energy and the operator of gas price forecasting site, Gas Wizard.

Imperial Oil Ltd. announced on the weekend that it proactively shut down a line running between Gretna, near the U.S. border, and Winnipeg after inspections raised concerns about its integrity.

The line supplies gasoline, diesel and jet fuel to the city and surrounding region.

In a news release, Imperial said the section of concern is just south of St. Adolphe, a community about 13 kilometres south of Winnipeg's Perimeter Highway.

The line, which runs under the Red River, was not compromised and no materials were spilled into the environment, the company said.

The repair work means the line will be out of service for approximately three months. But it's unlikely the general public will notice much impact, McTeague said.

Many fuel companies that supply product into the market also trade product with each other, he said.

So, if one company encounters an issue as Imperial is now, "they will rely or lean on the others to ensure that there is a minimal amount of disruption and you don't wind up with gas stations with yellow tape around them."

That means there's no need to rush the pumps to get fuel, McTeague said.

"That would only make a bad situation worse. There's no need to panic here," he said. "The companies will provide as much fuel as they need."

Rather than receiving 20,000 to 40,000 litres of fuel in a single delivery, some stations might wind up with half that in a delivery. However, there will be several more deliveries to make up the difference, McTeague said.

"There may be the odd rolling closure of a station temporarily until there's supply, but I don't see that happening in the short term," he said, adding that is more likely to happen when the demand of the summer driving season begins to kick in.

If people do see a sudden bump in prices at the pump in the next little while it won't be due to Imperial's work at its pipeline — it'll be because of something happening south of the border in the United States, McTeague added.

Earlier this year, he noted, gas prices in Winnipeg fell to about $1 a litre after the Manitoba government's gas tax holiday kicked in, eliminating the provincial 14-cent-a-litre tax on gasoline and diesel fuel from Jan. 1 until the end of June.

However, those prices have rebounded to about $1.33 per litre due to large refinery being shut down in the U.S.

In response to Imperial's announcement, the Manitoba government on the weekend said it has convened a "supplier table" comprising the largest fuel suppliers in the province to help support the management of the supply being brought into the province.

"These industry partners are leveraging extensive supply networks and actively working to minimize customer and end-user impacts by maintaining Manitoba's fuel supply through other means including rail and truck," the province's news release on late Sunday afternoon said.

It also noted the government will oversee the repair work to ensure all precautions are taken to protect the surrounding environment.

"I think the province wants to make sure there's an adequacy of supply for the airport, for trucks, for farming," McTeague said.