BP shuts down Alaskan oil line

In a sudden blow to the nation’s oil supply, half the production on Alaska’s North Slope was being shut down yesterday after BP Exploration Alaska Inc. discovered severe corrosion in a Prudhoe Bay oil-transit line.

A 400,000-barrel-per-day reduction in output would have a major effect on oil prices, said Tetsu Emori, chief commodities strategist at Mitsui Bussan Futures in Tokyo. “Oil prices could increase by as much as $10 per barrel given the current environment,” Mr. Emori said. “But we can’t really say for sure how big an effect this is going to have until we have more exact figures about how much production is going to be reduced.”

BOHICA! (Bend over, here it comes again.)