NuStar board backs $16.1 million pipeline project

The 12.5-mile will run from El Dorado to Potwin. It will carry products from the Gulf Coast and other points to customers in Kansas, Nebraska, Iowa, and the Dakotas.

NuStar expects to complete construction next May. The project grew out of supply problems last year in the Dakotas, the company said.

NuStar operates two pipelines in the area, but a gap in one causes bottlenecks in the other during peak-demand times, the company said.

Shares of San Antonio-based NuStar rose $2.33, or 5 percent, to $49.43 in afternoon trading. The stock has ranged from $42.20 to $64.70 over the past year.