Houston-based Energy Transfer was forced to shut its 240 mile 200 MMcf/d capacity Old Ocean Pipeline in Fort Bend County, Texas, due to fire, the company told Hart Energy.

The incident occurred on July 7 at approximately 11:15 a.m. in a rural area on the west edge of Houston. Energy Transfer’s “control center immediately shut in the line and the area was secured,” the company revealed in an emailed message saying there were no injuries.

According to Energy Transfer, the fire safely burned itself out by 12:30 p.m. after shutting the line and isolating the impacted pipeline section.

Energy Transfer has notified all the appropriate regulatory agencies and says there will be an investigation into the cause of the incident. However, it is unclear when the pipeline will resume normal operations.

The Old Ocean Pipeline is an intrastate system that delivers gas from Ellis County, Texas to Brazoria County, Texas. Energy Transfer operates and owns a 50% membership interest in pipeline. 

Energy Transfer has assets in 41 U.S. states and Canada and its core operations include transportation, storage and terminalling for natural gas, crude oil, NGL, refined products and LNG. 

Currently, Energy Transfer is eyeing an anticipated final investment decision (FID) this year regarding a large-scale Lake Charles LNG export facility that could require an investment of between $6 billion-$9 billion and could see initial tankers exporting gas as early as 2026.