Several oil and gas pipelines in the Los Angeles, California, area are “at risk” as multiple large fires rage on across the city, industry analysts are warning.
While none of the five refineries in the area are in the direct line of the wildfires so far, Andy Lipow, president of the Texas-based consultant firm Lipow Oil Associates, told Fox Business that several pipelines are within the vicinity, and that some have already been shut down.
“I have not heard of any crude oil or natural gas pipeline shutdowns, but they are at risk not only from the obvious fire hazard, but should lose power from preventative actions taken by the local utilities,” Lipow wrote in a statement.
He founded his firm in 2004 in order to assist “oil producers, refiners, and traders” by analyzing trends in the industry, his LinkedIn and website state.
The Kinder Morgan West Line, near the Hurst and Easton fires, has already been shut down due to power outages caused by the blazes— but Lipow said that pipeline shutdowns could mean less oil getting to other states.
The five Los Angeles-area refineries handle 60 percent of the state’s refining capacity, and 40 percent of the entire West Coast’s, as well as Hawaii and Alaska’s capacity, he explained.
According to his analysis, the Kinder Morgan West Line typically supplies about 60 percent of Nevada’s refined products and about 66 percent of Arizona’s.
“The fires are not directly impacting our operations,” a Kinder Morgan spokesperson assured the Oil Price Information Service (OPIS) on Wednesday. “The SFPP West Line was shut down due to power outages in the area. We expect the line to resume service once the power has been restored.”
Representatives from Chevron and Phillip’s 66 both told OPIS that they are “closely monitoring” the wildfires in the region, which have been ongoing since Tuesday.
More than 100,000 L.A. residents remain under evacuation orders, and officials have confirmed 11 deaths so far, according to CNN.
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