There’s a new setback for an oil company in its efforts to restart an oil pipeline shuttered by a major oil spill off the Santa Barbara County coast.
A judge denied the company’s efforts to order Santa Barbara County to approve its takeover of ownership permits for the pipeline and three oil platforms.
Sable Offshore Corporation says it’s repaired and now wants to restart the pipeline that ruptured on the Gaviota Coast in 2015, causing a more than 140,000-gallon oil spill. This would allow production to resume on three offshore oil platforms that rely on the pipeline to move oil.
Sable bought the pipeline and platforms from ExxonMobil after the spill.
But, earlier this year, Santa Barbara County Supervisors deadlocked on whether to approve the transfer of the related operating permits.
Sable went to court. Now, a judge refused the company’s request for an immediate transfer of the permits.
She ordered the Board of Supervisors to revisit the issue at a public hearing within 60 days. The judge said if the board deadlocks again, it must hold a third hearing.
Sable said in financial documents that it expects to restart operations by the end of the year. But, in addition to various legal challenges, the state has to make a final ruling on whether the pipeline can be restarted.
