Enbridge says open to re-route Line 5 after legal action by Wisconsin tribe

Enbridge Inc on Thursday said it was open to working with the Bad River Band and will consider re-routing its Line 5 oil pipeline after the native American tribe in Wisconsin sued the company seeking to shut the pipeline.

The Bad River Band filed a federal lawsuit against Enbridge on Tuesday in the Western District of Wisconsin, asking for the section of Line 5 that runs across its reservation to be decommissioned and removed because of the risk of a leak.

“The vast majority of the easements through the reservation extend until 2043; those in question affect only a small fraction of the twelve miles of Line 5 within the reservation. Enbridge has considered re-routing Line 5, and as discussed with the Bad River Band, remains open to this option as a solution,” Enbridge said in a statement.

The 540,000 barrels-per-day pipeline ferries light crude and propane from Alberta to refineries in the Midwest and Ontario and is a critical part of Enbridge’s Mainline network, which delivers the bulk of Canadian oil exports to the United States.