News Bulletin 1394
Pipeline restarted after unscheduled shutdown

ANCHORAGE, AK – Alyeska Pipeline restarted the Trans Alaska Pipeline System at 1:40 p.m. Tuesday following an unscheduled shutdown due to a communication failure with five Remote Gate Valves (RGV). The pipeline was shut down as a precautionary measure after Alyeska had lost communication with the valves. The exact cause of the failure is believed to be a result of heavy rainfalls and flooding in the area that caused a fiber optic cable to break between RGV 116 and RGV 123, which are located approximately 10 miles north of Valdez.

Technicians have been dispatched to the valve locations until pipeline flow is established and to support the Operations Control Center with troubleshooting should a communications failure occur. Alyeska plans to maintain 24-hour coverage at the valve sites until the pipeline is back to normal operations.

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