By Cristina Carlevaro MILAN, April 11 (Reuters) - Italian police are investigating damage to a transmission pylon that temporarily disrupted operations of the Transalpine Pipeline in March, the grid
Italian police investigate pylon damage that disrupted Transalpine Pipeline operations in March
Investigation and Impact on Transalpine Pipeline Operations
(Corrects to change to TAL from TAS in paragraph 6)
By Cristina Carlevaro
Incident Overview
MILAN, April 11 (Reuters) - Italian police are investigating damage to a transmission pylon that temporarily disrupted operations of the Transalpine Pipeline in March, the grid operator Terna and TAL said on Saturday, following media reports of possible sabotage.
Media Reports and Supply Risks
German media reported on Friday that an attack on the pipeline, which transports energy from Trieste to refineries in central Europe, put supplies of gasoline, diesel and aviation fuel to Germany's Mineraloelraffinerie Oberrhein (MiRO) refinery at risk for several days in March.
Details of the Incident
Terna said in a statement it had informed police about the incident, which it said was caused by unknown parties near Udine in the northeast of Italy on March 25. Terna said there was no harm to people or property and that repairs were completed four days later.
Refinery Response and Statements
MiRO Refinery Operations
A spokesperson for MiRO said the refinery had received no crude through the TAL pipeline for three days up to March 30, 0200 CET, and said it had to rely on its own stocks during that time.
Comments on the Cause
MiRO said it could not comment on what had caused the problems at TAL.
TAL's Official Statement
TAL said in a statement: "Any information relating to external actions by third parties against any part of TAL's facilities is untrue."
Ongoing Investigations and Maintenance
Current Status of Investigations
TAL, which said investigations into the incident ongoing, also said a scheduled shutdown of one of the two jetties at its marine terminal is under way until April 23 as part of an annual maintenance plan.
(Additional reporting by Christoph Steitz in Frankfurt, editing by Jane Merriman)
