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CALGARY A cyberattack that knocked out the main oil pipeline supplying the U.S. Eastern Seaboard comes days before a state-imposed deadline to shut a major Canadian conduit that could send prices soaring for consumers, highlighting the fragility of North America’s energy infrastructure.
“These recent events completely lift the hood on how vulnerable infrastructure is to attack now,” said Michael Tran, energy strategist at RBC Capital Markets in New York, adding the attack on the Colonial Pipeline Co. “was not just any pipeline” but “the key artery” supplying the most populated parts of the United States.
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The outage on the Colonial Pipeline could be exacerbated by a Michigan state order forcing Enbridge Inc.’s Line 5 pipeline supplying oil to Michigan, Ohio, Ontario and Pennsylvania refineries to shut down on Wednesday, which could further strain U.S. oil supply. Calgary-based Enbridge has vowed to defy the order and continue shipping oil through the line until forced to close by a court. Analysts believe shutting down Line 5 could cause higher fuel and propane prices in affected areas in the U.S. Midwest and Central Canada as well as potentially thousands of layoffs.
Still, the potential for two major pipelines being shut down in the same week shows the stretched energy supply system in North America is increasingly vulnerable to outages, Tran said.
Article content
CALGARY A cyberattack that knocked out the main oil pipeline supplying the U.S. Eastern Seaboard comes days before a state-imposed deadline to shut a major Canadian conduit that could send prices soaring for consumers, highlighting the fragility of North America’s energy infrastructure.
“These recent events completely lift the hood on how vulnerable infrastructure is to attack now,” said Michael Tran, energy strategist at RBC Capital Markets in New York, adding the attack on the Colonial Pipeline Co. “was not just any pipeline” but “the key artery” supplying the most populated parts of the United States.
We apologize, but this video has failed to load.
Article content
CALGARY A cyberattack that knocked out the main oil pipeline supplying the U.S. Eastern Seaboard comes days before a state-imposed deadline to shut a major Canadian conduit that could send prices soaring for consumers, highlighting the fragility of North America’s energy infrastructure.
“These recent events completely lift the hood on how vulnerable infrastructure is to attack now,” said Michael Tran, energy strategist at RBC Capital Markets in New York, adding the attack on the Colonial Pipeline Co. “was not just any pipeline” but “the key artery” supplying the most populated parts of the United States.
We apologize, but this video has failed to load.