The shutdown of America’s largest pipeline company, Colonial Pipeline, after the cyberattack, could lead to the strongest increase in fuel prices in the United States in seven years. This assessment was made on Sunday by the business news agency Bloomberg.
Kyiv. Ukraine. Ukraine Gate – May 10, 2021 – Economy
The agency, citing experts, notes that if the Colonial Pipeline does not resume fuel supplies to the East Coast of the United States by early summer, the price of gasoline in the country may rise to the highest level in seven years. As of Friday night, the average cost of a gallon (3,785 liters) of gasoline in the United States, according to Bloomberg, was $ 2.96. If the pipeline cannot be restored in the near future, it may exceed $ 3 per gallon for the first time since 2014 with the start of the summer season.
Bloomberg emphasizes that sellers and suppliers of petroleum products are already looking for alternative ways to supply fuel. In particular, the option of its transportation and storage using tankers in the Gulf of Mexico is being considered. Alternatively, the Plantation Pipeline, operated by Kinder Morgan, may be selected as a Colonial Pipeline. However, its conductivity is only 720 thousand barrels per day (BPD) compared to more than 3.4 million BPD in the Colonial Pipeline.
On Saturday, the agency warned that a cyberattack on the Colonial Pipeline could disrupt fuel supplies to the United States. On Sunday, it quoted Commerce Minister Gina Raimondo as saying that the government was working closely with the company, city, and state governments to restore the pipeline as soon as possible to prevent disruptions. The U.S. Infrastructure and Cyber Security Agency said Saturday it is in contact with Colonial Pipeline management and other federal agencies as part of an investigation into the incident.
According to a company that meets the fuel needs of approximately 45% of the US East Coast population, a cyberattack on its systems was carried out using a rogue virus. According to Reuters, behind the attack may be a group of hackers who call themselves DarkSide.
Amid the incident, the company was forced to suspend operations. According to the management, the process of resuming work and returning to normal activities has already started.
As a result of the hacking attack on SolarWinds, the United States imposed sanctions against Russia.
Read also: Zelensky Imposes Sanctions on 95 Companies
Source: Ukrgate
