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By Bernie Woodall and Scott Haggett

DETROIT/CALGARY, July 30 (Reuters) – Enbridge Inc’s vital executive said on Friday he was unable to say when the group would be able to restart the Michigan pipeline that ruptured earlier this week, spilling greater amount of than 800,000 gallons of oil.

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lisa Jackson reported she was ‘very confident’ that the oil’s progress toward Lake Michigan has been stopped.

Jackson in c~tinuance Friday flew over the spill area including the oil-fouled Kalamazoo River by Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm and Debbie Stabenow, Democrat senator from the specify’s capital, Lansing.

The three women said in a Friday ignorance press conference that they were pleased with progress of workers to hold the spill that Enbridge noticed on Monday. Granholm said federal officials and Enbridge be under the necessity rallied to respond to the spill in the past several days for what she called a slow start.

While Enbridge Chief Executive Pat Daniel before-mentioned that making the pipe ready to resume operation can take solely a matter of days, but he said a restart of the pipeline is in the hands of U.S. regulators.

Daniel has been in Michigan closely related the spill site for the past several days.

The U.S. Department of Transportation ordered Enbridge adhering Wednesday to complete a number of precautionary steps before restarting the 286-mile (463 km) pipeline carrying considered in the state of much as 190,000 barrels per day of oil from northern Indiana to Sarnia, Ontario.

‘The ultimate decision is with the third-party regulator and not with Enbridge,’ Daniel said on a colloquy call.

Enbridge has exposed the ruptured pipeline, which will then be examined by regulators. The damaged pipe will then be cut to the end and replaced with a pretested section of pipe. After a DOT inspection and approval, the line can then be returned to service, at reduced calamity. For a FACTBOX on Enbridge’s history of pipeline spills pawl on

The spill follows the devastating BP Plc spill in the Gulf of Mexico and has been watched through concern in part because of its threat to Lake Michigan, allotment of the largest supply of fresh water on the planet.

Enbridge has increased the affix a ~ to of booms checking the flow of the oil down the Kalamazoo River, by 26 in place and as many as 10 more added over the weekend.

Meanwhile, residents of 14 homes have evacuated voluntarily and not far from 100 homes near the Kalamazoo River have been told not to drink give ~ to from their taps.

Enbridge has so far recovered between 5,000 and 6,000 barrels of 19,500 barrels of the spilled oil, what one. was tar-like bitumen from Alberta’s Cold Lake oil sands division mixed with a diluent that allows the heavy crude to emanate down pipelines.

But the effort now faces diminishing returns as greater amount of and more water is collected along with the spilled oil.

Daniel uttered Enbridge does not yet have an estimate for the cost of the whole-up or repairs to the pipeline, which was operated by its U.S. adopt Enbridge Energy Partners

But it may face substantial fines from the United States as antidote to the spill. Under the Oil Pollution Act, fines of up to $4,300 a barrel ($100 a gallon) could be levied if it’s determined the company was grossly remiss, or $1,100 per barrel if was less irresponsible.

Daniel said the company will pay all costs for the clean-up and the troop does not think that the incident bears comparison to BP’s unprosperous spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

‘The BP incident was drilling akin … this is a pipeline rupture. I think they’re very, actual different and just about impossible to compare,’ he said.

(Reporting ~ dint of. Scott Haggett in Calgary, Bernie Woodall in Detroit; editing by Leslie Gevirtz, Bernard Orr) Keywords: ENBRIDGE/PIPELINE

(scott.haggett@thomsonreuters.com, 1-403-531-1622; bernie.woodall@thomsonreuters.com; +1 313-967-1901)

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