Keystone Pipeline Shuts Down Just as Gas Prices Started to Decrease

Gas and diesel prices alike experienced steep downward trends this week until a Keystone Pipeline leak was discovered on Wednesday.

An emergency shutdown of the pipeline went into place Wednesday night after a leak in northwest Kansas just south of the Nebraska border triggered alarms.

The pipeline was still closed on Friday as crews isolated the affected segment and contained the oil's downstream migration, according to a tweet from Canada-based pipeline company TC Energy.

The news of the leak launched oil markets into a panic, and prices saw a 5 percent jump before retreating, according to a report from CNN Business.

The source of the leak hasn't been revealed. It is uncertain if the closure will have a longer-term impact on gas and diesel prices, which could depend largely on how long the pipeline is closed.

The Associated Press reported that the spill occurred at Kansas' Mill Creek, which flows into the Little Blue River. According to the EPA, the oil did not affect the Little Blue River.

"It's something to keep an eye on," Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy, said in the AP article. "It could eventually impact oil supplies to refiners, which could be severe if it lasts more than a few days."

The AP reported that past leaks have closed the pipeline for up to two weeks, but this closure could last longer since the spill involved a body of water. TC Energy crews have worked for two days to mitigate and recover the spilled oil.

GasBuddy tracks national gasoline price trends. On Wednesday, before the leak was discovered, national gas and diesel prices were trending downward.

That afternoon, De Haan tweeted several times about how the national average for gas prices was expected to reach $2.99 a few days before Christmas. Several states, including California, Indiana, Michigan and Wisconsin, saw average gasoline prices fall more than 80 cents in a week's time.

The national average price for diesel, which skyrocketed to more than $5.80 a gallon as refineries struggled to increase inventory to match demand, also dipped below $5 for the first time in several months, according to a tweet from De Haan, and is expected to fall as much as another dollar in the coming weeks unless the pipeline leak changes its track.

The leak spilled an estimated 14,000 barrels of oil, according to the CNN report. The report said the pipeline transports 600,000 barrels of oil a day.

Newsweek reached out to TC Energy for comment.