NEW YORK, March 28 (Reuters) - Colonial Pipeline will delay the shutdown of a small, underutilized section of its pipeline system that delivers fuel to North Baltimore from April 1 to May 1, according to a notice to shippers seen by Reuters.
The company, which operates the largest network of refined product pipelines in the United States, told shippers on Wednesday that it made the decision out of an abundance of caution in light of Tuesday's collapse of the Francis Scott Key bridge in Baltimore, the notice said.
A spokesperson for Colonial confirmed the decision.
Baltimore's dependence on the pipeline has grown since the collapse of the bridge, which has caused an indefinite closure of the city's port. Two small subsections of Colonial's main pipeline deliver fuel to Baltimore, one in the north and the other in the port area.
The line into the port area has been running at full capacity since Tuesday and the company will pro-rate deliveries from April 9 to April 16, it said on Wednesday. (Reporting by Shariq Khan in New York and Laura Sanicola in Washington; Editing by Liz Hampton and Jamie Freed)
