Enbridge Moves to Rewrite North America’s Heavy-Crude Map

Enbridge has approved a $1.4 billion expansion across its Mainline and Flanagan South systems that will push more Canadian heavy crude into the U.S. Midwest and down to the Gulf Coast—right where coking refineries are built to run it. Phase 1 of the Mainline Optimization (MLO1) adds 150,000 bpd on the Mainline and 100,000 bpd on Flanagan South, with in-service targeted for 2027. The uplift comes through pump and terminal expansions on Flanagan South and upstream optimizations on the Mainline, backed by long-term take-or-pay commitments from…