Sable Offshore said Tuesday that the Trump administration has cleared the way for it to restart a 122-mile Las Flores Pipeline connecting offshore oil platforms to a processing facility in Santa Barbara County. Shares of the Houston-based exploration and development firm jumped early Tuesday for the second time in less than a week.
Sable Offshore Corp. jumped 9% to trade above 8 a share early Tuesday.
The approval to restart the pipeline, which ruptured in 2015, followed last week's news that the U.S. Department of Transportation classified it as an interstate pipeline and assumed regulatory authority from the state.
Sable Offshore Pipeline
Sable Offshore (SOC) was formed in 2024 to acquire the offshore oil platforms in the Santa Ynez field in federal waters, pipeline assets and onshore processing facility from ExxonMobil (XOM). However, local officials and environmental activists had lined up against allowing the pipeline to restart. Golfer Phil Mickelson, who has an investment in Sable, had backed a restart of the pipeline on social media.
The May 2015 oil spill involved over 100,000 gallons of oil released from the pipeline, about one-fifth of which flowed into the Pacific Ocean, causing a monthlong closure of nearby state beaches and fishing waters.
Sable said on May 19 that it had restarted oil production and completed its repair program on the pipeline. However, due to its inability to get approval to restart the pipeline, Sable had announced an alternative plan involving offshore storage and transporting the oil by tanker.
Phil Mickelson: 'We've All Lost Money'
Phil Mickelson's tight connection to Sable Offshore came to light not just from his social media posts, but also a report published by Hunterbrook Media alleged that Sable Offshore shared insider information with the golfer and other select investors.
Among subjects discussed was a potential $200 million equity offering in the near term, diluting shareholder ownership.
Mickelson reportedly wrote in response to Hunterbrook Media, "What's funny about it is we've all been wrong on just about everything and we've all lost money but whatever."
In a Sept. 25 post, Mickelson wrote: "The reason I became involved with Sable Offshore $SOC is simple: the data shows it's a true win-win for California — especially our environment." At the time Sable was trading a bit over 20.
