Colonial Pipeline announced Wednesday that it has “initiated the restart of pipeline operations” as of 5 p.m. Eastern time, following a ransomware-related operational shutdown late last week. The company operates the 5,500-mile pipeline that transports 2.5 million barrels a day of fuel consumers from Houston, Texas to the New York Harbor. It said it will take several days for the product delivery supply chain to return to normal and some markets service by the pipeline “may experience, or continue to experience, intermittent service interruptions during the start-up period.” Colonial pledged to move “as much gasoline, diesel and jet fuel as is safely possible.” Many gas stations in the Southeast have suffered from shortages as drivers have rushed to fill up their tanks in the wake of the shutdown, according to GasBuddy. The average price for a gallon of regular gasoline topped $3 a gallon on Wednesday for the first time since 2014, GasBuddy reported, but the travel and navigation app also said that prices would have likely reached that level even without the pipeline issue as demand has started to recover from weak pandemic levels.
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