NEW YORK, Oct 12 (Reuters) - Five oil pipelines disrupted by environmental protesters had restarted early on Wednesday, although at least one of the lines that carry millions of barrels of crude from Canada to the United States was operating at reduced rates.
In an unprecedented coordinated attack on Tuesday, protesters used bolt cutters to cut locks and chains and break into valve stations at five remote locations to stop the flow through arteries that pump around 15 percent of the oil consumed in the United States every day. Corp's TRP.TO Keystone pipeline and Spectra Energy (NYSE:SE) Partners LP's SEP.N Express pipeline both restarted Tuesday afternoon, according to company representatives.
Information provider Genscape said Keystone was running at reduced rates.
Enbridge Inc ENB.TO could not immediately be reached for comment but Genscape said its Mainline pipeline had resumed normal flows.
Kinder Morgan Inc (NYSE:KMI) KMI.N said it was not operating the spur of the pipeline impacted by the protesters, although it has since restarted the rest of the pipeline.
Activists across Montana, Minnesota, North Dakota and Washington state were arrested on Tuesday after the early morning raids, which they posted on social media. group Climate Direct Action said the move was in support of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, which has been protesting the construction of a $3.7 billion pipeline carrying oil from North Dakota to the U.S. Gulf Coast.
The action on Tuesday underscored the vulnerability of the thousands of miles of pipeline in the United States that deliver energy to consumers. Graphic showing planned Dakota Access pipeline:
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