READ MORE: Marathon sees steep drop in profits, Enon-based Speedway more stable
The $3.7 billion Dakota Access Pipeline project would extend more than 1,170 miles across North Dakota, then through South Dakota, Iowa and Illinois. Native Americans and environmental groups have sought to delay construction and have protested the project because of concerns that the pipeline might impact a sensitive watershed and land the Standing Rock Sioux consider sacred ground.
Marathon has agreed to form a joint venture with Enbridge Energy Partners through their subsidiaries to acquire a partial equity interest in the Bakken Pipeline system. Marathon is expected to own about a 9.2 percent indirect interest in the pipeline system in exchange for an investment of about $500 million, according to information from the company.
Protesters standing outside Speedway’s corporate headquarters in Enon on Wednesday said they want Marathon to divest its financial interest in the project.
“The Dakota Access Pipeline is going right by this Native American reservation that is actually sovereign land,” said Shawn Tulacke, one of the protesters in Enon. “They would have to be consulted before this project began but they weren’t consulted. It’s going right over their waterway and it’s going to pollute their land and destroy their livelihood.”
Marathon officials responded with a brief statement Thursday, referring residents to the company’s website.
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“We support our fellow Americans’ right to peacefully make their voices heard while on public property,” the company’s statement read. “Those interested in Marathon Petroleum Corporation’s commitment to health, safety, environmental stewardship and transparency can find details at www.marathonpetroleum.com under the ‘Corporate Citizenship’ tab.”
Information from Marathon shows the Bakken Pipeline system is expected to deliver more than 470,000 barrels of crude oil per day from North Dakota to Illinois, and eventually to the Gulf Coast.
“This system is planned to provide cost-effective access to Bakken crude oil production for the Midwest and Gulf Coast, which will increase (Marathon’s) refinery supply flexibility,” said Gary Hemminger, Marathon’s chairman, in a news release announcing the joint venture.
Concerns over the project have led to major protests in North Dakota. Last month, police were called in to remove protesters from land owned by an energy company involved in the project. Members of the Standing Rock Sioux have been particularly concerned about a portion of the project that has been planned to run under the Missouri River near their reservation.
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