Trans-Alaska Oil Pipeline Remains Shut Down
Daily News Article — Posted on January 10, 2011
(by Mary Pemberton, KOMONews.com) ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) – The trans-Alaska pipeline remained shut down Sunday more than 24 hours after a leak was discovered at a North Slope pump station.
Alyeska Pipeline Service Co. said the leak, which was discovered Saturday at 8:15 a.m., is coming from a section of below-ground piping encased in concrete next to Pump Station 1 – the first pump station on the 800-mile pipeline (see photo at right of an above-ground portion of the pipeline).
The pump station at Prudhoe Bay takes in all the crude from North Slope oil fields before it is delivered to the main line and goes down the trans-Alaska pipeline to Valdez, where it is loaded onto tankers for delivery to the West Coast.
The pipeline, which normally carries between 630,000 and 650,000 barrels [a day], was shut down at 8:50 a.m. Alyeska Pipeline runs the pipeline for five companies that own it.
Alyeska Pipeline spokeswoman Michelle Egan said the leaked oil from the pipe went into the basement of the pump station. Work began Saturday afternoon and by noon Sunday about 90 percent had been removed. Some work remains, she said, for example cleaning up the walls. From nine to 10 barrels of oil was spilled, she said.
“We have the leak contained,” she said.
In the meantime, North Slope production has been cut to 5 percent of normal.
Tom DeRuyter, the on-scene coordinator for the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation, said four responders were working on the spill.
The focus now is to get the pipeline operating again as quickly as possible, Egan said.
Alyeska Pipeline was looking at several scenarios, including bypassing the leak with temporary piping, Egan said. That’s because the area where the leak occurred is complex, and also is underground and encased in concrete and not easily accessible.
Egan did not know how quickly the pipeline could be put back into operation.
In the meantime, Alyeska Pipeline will be watching for any problems associated with low-flow in the pipeline, such as icing in the line. Ice in the line could interfere with machinery when the pipeline is returned to normal, causing another shutdown.
“We don’t like to shut down in winter unexpectedly,” Egan said. “We have to watch that very carefully.”
Associated Press. Reprinted here for educational purposes only. May not be reproduced on other websites without permission from KOMO News. Visit the website at komonews.com.
Background
TAPS: (from tapseis.anl.gov/guide/index.cfm)
- The Trans-Alaska Pipeline System (TAPS) is an 800-mile pipeline system that transports crude oil from Alaska's North Slope to Port Valdez on Alaska's Prince William Sound.
- Alyeska Pipeline Service Company operates TAPS, with regulatory oversight through the Joint Pipeline Office.
- (TAPS) consists of the pipeline, pump stations, a marine terminal, and associated facilities and systems.
- TAPS transports crude oil from Alaska's North Slope to Port Valdez in Prince William Sound.
- TAPS is operated by Alyeska Pipeline Service Company on behalf of six owner companies.
- Federal and state governments cooperatively oversee the TAPS system and administer the federal and state rights-of-way terms and conditions through the Joint Pipeline Office (JPO).
Pipeline Quick Facts (from the Alyeska Pipeline Co. website. For more information, go to alyeska-pipe.com/pipelinefacts.html)
- The Trans Alaska Pipeline System was designed and constructed to move oil from the North Slope of Alaska to the northern most ice-free port in Valdez, Alaska.
- Length: 800 miles.
- Diameter: 48 inches.
- Crosses three mountain ranges and over 800 rivers and streams.
- Cost to build: $8 billion in 1977, largest privately funded construction project at that time.
- Construction began on March 27, 1975 and was completed on May 31, 1977.
- First oil moved through the pipeline on June 20, 1977.
- Over 15 billion barrels have moved through the Trans Alaska Pipeline System.
- First tanker to carry crude oil from Valdez: ARCO Juneau, August 1, 1977.
- Tankers loaded at Valdez: 19,625 through April 30, 2008.
- Storage tanks in Valdez - 18 with total storage capacity of 9.1 million barrels total.
- The mission of Alyeska's Ship Escort Response Vessel System is to safely escort tankers through Prince William Sound.
A map of the Trans Alaska Pipleline System (TAPS) and pump station locations:
