Pipeline operator agrees to $26.9M penalty over Kansas oil spill

Key Points:

• South Bow, operator of the Keystone Pipeline, faces a $26.9 million civil penalty and must spend about $40 million on future accident prevention as part of a proposed settlement over a December 2022 oil spill in Kansas.
• The spill released nearly 13,000 barrels of heavy crude oil into a creek in Washington County, marking the largest onshore crude pipeline spill in the U.S. in nine years and exceeding all previous spills on the Keystone system combined.
• Under the settlement, South Bow will also pay over $3 million to Kansas for environmental restoration projects, with the agreement subject to a judge’s approval after a 30-day public comment period.
• The spill caused significant environmental damage, harming or killing more than 2,700 animals, including endangered long-eared bats, though no human injuries or public water supply impacts were reported.
• Investigations revealed that pipeline stress from improper soil compaction and land changes contributed to the rupture, and since the spill, South Bow has conducted extensive inspections and repairs to improve pipeline integrity.