Enbridge Energy Intends To Invest $7M For Cleanup Equipment

Oil and natural gas transporter Enbridge Energy Partners L.P. (NYSE:EEP) , which owns twin oil pipelines in the area where Lakes Huron and Michigan converge, intends to spend $7 million over the next two years on clean up tools that could be deployed in case of an oil spill in Line 5 pipeline.

These cleaning equipments will include skimming and containment devices to help the crew remove oil from open water surfaces, even in icy conditions.

The purchase is a strategic move by Enbridge to convince residents in northern Michigan that its Line 5 pipeline is in good shape and poses no risk to the scenic area and its tourism-based economy.

Line 5, which carries nearly 23 million gallons of light crude oil and liquefied natural gas daily, is feared to create a disaster in Huron and Michigan lakes if spillage occurs. It is believed that an oil spill in Line 5 might risk more than 17,000 square miles of open water in Straits of Mackinac.

This apprehension stems from the rupture of another Enbridge pipeline in southern Michigan in 2010. This leak released more than 800,000 gallons of oil into the Kalamazoo River and a tributary creek and damaged around 37 miles of river.

Houston, TX-based Enbridge Energy, a master limited partnership (MLP), is engaged in the gathering, processing and transmission of natural gas and crude oil. The partnership is best known for its ownership of the Lakehead System, one of the world’s longest petroleum pipeline systems.

Enbridge Energy’s focus on fee-based and diversified businesses has enabled it to dilute its business risks as well as provide a stable and steadily growing earnings profile. However, Enbridge Energy’s midstream natural gas business is sensitive to changes in natural gas supply, demand fundamentals and commodity cycles associated with gas processing margins.

As a result, Enbridge carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold), implying that it will perform in line with the broader U.S. equity market over the next one to three months.

Some better-ranked players from the broader energy sector are Braskem S.A. (NYSE:BAK) , North Atlantic Drilling Limited (NYSE:NADL) and Halcón Resources Corporation (NYSE:HK) . All these stocks sport a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).