CALGARY, AB and
LANSING, Mich., Nov. 13, 2020 /PRNewswire/ - Enbridge remains
confident that Line 5 continues to operate safely and that there is
no credible basis for terminating the 1953 Easement allowing the
Dual Line 5 Pipelines to cross the Straits of Mackinac.
Enbridge received a notice from the Governor's chief legal
counsel this afternoon and is reviewing the document.
"This notice and the report from Michigan Department of Natural
Resources are a distraction from the fundamental facts," said
Vern Yu, Executive Vice President
and President, Liquids Pipelines. "Line 5 remains safe, as
envisioned by the 1953 Easement, and as recently validated by our
federal safety regulator."
"We will continue to focus on the safe operation of the dual
Line 5 pipelines at the Straits of Mackinac, ensuring the Great Lakes are
protected while also reliably delivering the energy that helps to
fuel Michigan's and the region's
economy," Yu continued.
In developing its report, the Michigan Department of Natural
Resources (DNR) chose to conduct its assessment of Easement
compliance in a non-public manner. The DNR rejected Enbridge's
offer to allow technical experts to discuss any questions or
clarifications related to its review. This failure to engage
reflects a lack of understanding or worse, a continued failure to
meet the State's commitments under the 2018 Second Agreement
between the State of Michigan and
Enbridge, which contemplates periodic meetings on pipeline issues
to avoid just this kind of situation.
With today's actions by the Governor and Attorney General based
on historical Line 5 compliance, Enbridge finally will have an
opportunity to review the DNR's analysis and provide a thorough
response through the legal process.
Line 5 is an essential source of energy for not only
Michigan but for the entire region
including Wisconsin, Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Ontario, and Quebec. Any disruption would have devastating
consequences.
Our focus remains on protecting the Great Lakes, the environment
and all the people who use these waters while delivering energy
that people rely on daily. Enbridge's Line 5 has served
Michiganders safely without incident at the Straits crossing for
more than 65 years, over nine different State Administrations. We
remain committed to advancing The Great Lakes Tunnel that will
contain a new section of pipeline to replace the Dual Pipelines.
Enbridge is currently seeking permit approval for the tunnel
project and replacement pipeline which, upon completion, will make
a safe Straits crossing even safer.
Forward Looking Information
Forward-looking information, or forward-looking statements,
have been included in this news release to provide information
about Enbridge Inc. ("Enbridge" or the "Company") and its
subsidiaries and affiliates, including management's assessment of
Enbridge and its subsidiaries' future plans and operations. This
information may not be appropriate for other purposes.
Forward-looking statements are typically identified by words such
as ''anticipate'', ''expect'', ''project'', ''estimate'',
''forecast'', ''plan'', ''intend'', ''target'', ''believe'',
"likely" and similar words suggesting future outcomes or statements
regarding an outlook. Forward-looking information or statements in
this news release include statements with respect to the Line 5
dual pipelines, including the safe operations thereof, litigation
and anticipated impact of any disruption to Line 5
operations. This news release also contains forward-looking
information about the tunnel project permitting process.
Although Enbridge believes these forward-looking statements
are reasonable based on the information available on the date such
statements are made and processes used to prepare the information,
such statements are not guarantees of future performance and
readers are cautioned against placing undue reliance on
forward-looking statements. By their nature, these statements
involve a variety of assumptions, known and unknown risks and
uncertainties and other factors, which may cause actual results,
levels of activity and achievements to differ materially from those
expressed or implied by such statements. Assumptions regarding the
expected supply of and demand for crude oil, natural gas, NGL and
renewable energy, and the prices of these commodities, are material
to and underlie all forward-looking statements, as they may impact
current and future levels of demand for the Company's services.
Similarly, the COVID-19 pandemic, exchange rates, inflation and
interest rates impact the economies and business environments in
which the Company operates and may impact levels of demand for the
Company's services and cost of inputs and are therefore inherent in
all forward-looking statements. Due to the interdependencies and
correlation of these macroeconomic factors, the impact of any one
assumption on a forward-looking statement cannot be determined with
certainty. The most relevant assumptions associated with
forward-looking statements in this news release with regards to the
Line 5 dual pipelines include the impact of government and
regulatory actions, approvals and litigation on ongoing and future
operations.
Enbridge's forward-looking statements are subject to risks
and uncertainties, including, but not limited to those risks and
uncertainties discussed in this news release and in the Company's
other filings with Canadian and United
States securities regulators. The impact of any one risk,
uncertainty or factor on a particular forward-looking statement is
not determinable with certainty as these are interdependent and
Enbridge's future course of action depends on management's
assessment of all information available at the relevant time.
Except to the extent required by applicable law, Enbridge assumes
no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking
statements made in this news release or otherwise, whether as a
result of new information, future events or otherwise. All
subsequent forward-looking statements, whether written or oral,
attributable to Enbridge or persons acting on the Company's behalf,
are expressly qualified in their entirety by these cautionary
statements.
About Enbridge Inc.
Enbridge Inc. is a leading North American energy
infrastructure company. We safely and reliably deliver the energy
people need and want to fuel quality of life. Our core businesses
include Liquids Pipelines, which transports approximately 25
percent of the crude oil produced in North America; Gas Transmission and Midstream,
which transports approximately 20 percent of the natural gas
consumed in the U.S.; and Utilities and Power Operations, which
serves approximately 3.7 million retail customers in Ontario and Quebec, and generates approximately 1,750 MW
of net renewable power in North
America and Europe. The
Company's common shares trade on and stock exchanges under the
symbol ENB. For more information, visit the Toronto and New
York stock exchanges under the symbol ENB. For more
information, visit www.enbridge.com
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION PLEASECONTACT:
Media
Ryan Duffy Toll Free: (888)
992-0997
Email: media@enbridge.com
Investment Community
Jonathan Morgan Toll Free: (800)
481-2804
Email: investor.relations@enbridge.com
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SOURCE Enbridge Inc.