TC Declares Force Majeure on Keystone Shipments after Storm

TC Energy Corp has declared force majeure on shipments on its 590,000-barrel-per-day (bpd) Keystone oil pipeline after a snow storm hit Manitoba over the weekend, disrupting operations.

NEW YORK/CALGARY, Alberta (Reuters) - TC Energy Corp has declared force majeure on shipments on its 590,000-barrel-per-day (bpd) Keystone oil pipeline after a snow storm hit Manitoba over the weekend, disrupting operations, the company confirmed.

Force majeure is a declaration that unforeseeable circumstances prevented a party from fulfilling a contract.

The storm knocked out power to about 3-4 pump stations in Manitoba, affecting pipeline flows, three sources said.

"Due to the recent storm in Manitoba over the weekend, we did declare force majeure as the province declared a state of emergency. We are currently operating at reduced flows," TC Energy spokesman Terry Cunha told Reuters in an email.

The Keystone pipeline system is a critical artery taking Canadian crude from northern Alberta to refineries in the U.S. Midwest.

Manitoba was struck by a major storm packing snow and toppling trees over the weekend.

It was not immediately clear the how much of volumes were affected by TC Energy's declaration of force majeure.