Carbon emissions will be on the agenda when the Michigan Public Service Commission (MPSC) begins hearings on May 18 into Enbridge Inc.’s $500 million plan to save its 540,000 b/d Line 5 oil conduit.

“The need for a robust record in this case is crucial,” said an MPSC procedural ruling Wednesday. The ruling regards the proposal to keep the Canadian-owned pipeline open by replacing its four-mile underwater Straits of Mackinac crossing with a new utility tunnel.

The MPSC now wants the review to include a look at the potential greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from Line 5. The Michigan Environmental Protection Act requires an emissions review because it was meant “to cover not just the construction of pipelines for the sake of building pipelines, but also their purpose and the...