United States Energy Secretary Chris Wright has directed Sable Offshore Corp to reactivate the Santa Ynez Unit (SYU) production facility and the associated pipeline system in California, citing security risks amid the disruption of oil shipping in the Strait of Hormuz.
“Sable’s facility can produce approximately 50,000 barrels of oil per day, a 15 percent increase to California’s in-state oil production that can replace nearly 1.5 million barrels of foreign crude each month”, DOE said in an online statement.
SYU halted 2015 after an oil spill that according to the California Coastal Commission (CCC) released 123,000 gallons of oil and caused environmental damage to 150 miles of coastline. The project was owned by Plains Pipeline LP at the time of the spill. Plains Pipeline sold it to Exxon Mobil Corp in 2022. Sable acquired SYU from ExxonMobil in 2024.
In May 2025 Houston, Texas-based Sable said it had resumed production at one of SYU’s platforms and completed onshore pipeline repairs. However, Sable has yet to make a delivery. California authorities have insisted the operator has yet to fulfil remedies determined by the state to ensure the safety of the pipeline system.
California v Federal Government
Failing to convince state regulators, Sable successfully sought a federal emergency special permit. In granting the permit, the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) said conditions proposed by Sable were sufficient, according to the decision (docket no. PHMSA-2025-1502) issued December 23, 2025.
Sable went on to apply for another PHMSA special permit (docket no. PHMSA-2026-0464) seeking relief from compliance with certain requirements in federal pipeline safety regulations. That permit is undergoing public comment, according to the online portal of the Federal Register.
In response California Attorney-General Rob Bonta filed a suit January 23, 2026 to stop Sable and the PHMSA’s attempts to, as per the attorney-general’s statement at the time, “federalize” the SYU pipeline system.
‘Supply Disruption Risks’
Now Sable need not wait for the PHMSA’s order of relief following Wright’s restoration order.
The order from the energy secretary seeks to “address supply disruption risks caused by California policies that have left the region and U.S. military forces dependent on foreign oil”, according to the DOE statement.
The order invoked an executive order issued by Donald Trump last Friday, under which the president has delegated some of his authorities under the Defense Production Act to agency heads.
“Today, more than 60 percent of the oil refined in California comes from overseas, with a significant share traveling through the Strait of Hormuz – presenting serious national security threats”, DOE said.
“Unlike other regions of the country, California remains largely disconnected from interstate crude pipelines that move American oil to refineries across the United States.
“The action also prioritizes pipeline transportation capacity to ensure crude produced offshore California moves through the Las Flores Pipeline System to Pentland Station and into interstate pipelines, allowing American energy to reach domestic refineries more efficiently, while reducing California’s reliance on foreign oil vulnerable to geopolitical disruption”.
Pushback
In response to Wright’s order, Governor Gavin Newsom threatened legal action, accusing the federal government of using the Middle East war launched by the Trump administration as a pretext to bypass state oversight over the pipeline.
“Trump admitted he knew his Iran war would send gas prices up… His answer is a pipeline that would contribute just 0.05 percent to total global crude oil production, and that represents less than 0.3 percent of the petroleum products that are trapped in the Persian Gulf because of Trump’s war”, said a statement published online by Newsom’s office. “That is a drop in the bucket that will not solve the crisis he created”.
The state will take “prompt legal action” to enforce existing court orders and state law against Sable and “challenge the Trump administration’s unlawful reliance on emergency powers”, the statement said. “A presidential executive order cannot override state law”.
The statement also countered, “Where in-state crude oil production is helpful, however, Governor Newsom and the Legislature have advanced their own plan: SB 237 (2025) – the same bill that imposes heightened safety requirements on offshore pipelines – also increases onshore crude oil production in Kern County, boosting domestic crude availability as California manages its long-term energy transition while maintaining strong health and environmental safeguards”.
“Already this year under SB 237 (2025), Kern County has issued 385 oil well permits, and the California Geologic Energy Management Division has approved 138 permits for drilling new oil wells”, the governor’s office said.
SYU Ramp-Up
On Monday Sable confirmed it has resumed transporting SYU oil. “Prior to resuming hydrocarbon transportation from LFC [Las Flores Canyon] to Sable’s sales point at Pentland Station, Sable had approximately 540,000 barrels of processed crude oil in storage at LFC, representing more than the line fill volume for the SYPS [Santa Ynez Pipeline System] between LFC and Pentland Station”, the company said.
“Sable is fully staffed and will continue to implement the conditions of the Emergency Special Permit previously issued by the United States Department of Transportation, Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration.
“Sable is currently producing hydrocarbons from its Platform Harmony at the SYU and our wells continue to perform as expected. Production ramp-up is anticipated to proceed with full production resumption at Platforms Harmony and Heritage this month, in March 2026, and Platform Hondo in June 2026.
“The company plans to commence first sales by April 1, 2026 at an expected gross oil rate of 50,000 Bbls/d”.
To contact the author, email jov.onsat@rigzone.com
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