This release was issued by the activists condemning their own action on Enbridge's behalf.

Mar 15, 2011 11:00 ET

Oil Spill Safety Hoax "Irresponsible": Enbridge

CALGARY, ALBERTA--(Marketwire - March 15, 2011) - Enbridge Inc. (TSX:ENB) (NYSE:ENB) and its proposed Northern Gateway Pipelines project were falsely associated with a fraudulent oil spill safety campaign entitled “MyHairCares,” announced via mailings to hundreds of hair salons early this month, as well as a phony press release earlier today from “Enbridge Sustainable Initiatives,” and that was reported in several outlets. Enbridge wishes to note that there is no such division, subsidiary, department, or other entity within Enbridge, and that the Company deplores the perpetrators of this act of identity piracy and will vigorously prosecute them, appropriately and to the greatest extent of the law.

“This irresponsible hoax is nothing less than an attack on Canada's resources,” said Patrick D. Daniel, President and Chief Executive Officer. “We are saddened that lies are being used to demean the great strides Enbridge has made in delivering Canada's vast natural wealth to the world, strides which will become giant leaps with the Northern Gateway Pipelines.”

“The so-called ‘MyHairCares’ program is a dangerous fraud conducted by environmentalist radicals,” said Jennifer Varey, head of Media Relations for Enbridge. “Its aim is to terrorize innocent salon consumers into fearing the Northern Gateway project and thinking our company is less than fully prepared for catastrophe. I can assure you, when inevitable oil spills do occur, we at Enbridge have more up our sleeves than a handful of hair.”

The cleanup operations of the summer and early fall in Marshall, Michigan and Romeoville, Illinois helped improve the Company’s readiness to respond not only to oil spills in themselves, but to the concerns of affected individuals and communities.

“As a Canadian company, Enbridge is committed to the safety of our people, our environment, and our wildlife, wherever they operate,” said Mr. Daniel. “That is why we are hereby committing to a $20 billion liability bond for the Northern Gateway Pipelines. Should an unforeseeable event come to pass, this bond will insure the settlement of all verifiable liability claims made by Northern and coastal communities within legal due process. We believe this will fully address the issue and lay concerns to rest.”

Enbridge had planned to announce the liability bond at the next Enbridge Annual General Meeting, to be held May 11 in Calgary, but this morning’s act of deception unjustifiably highlighted public uncertainty about Enbridge’s preparedness for an emergency, prompting the announcement to be pushed up.

Few oil spills have ever cost more than $20 billion to address.

Enbridge’s Northern Gateway Pipelines project will transport oil from Bruderheim, AB to a port in Kitimat, BC. Specially trained tanker captains, assisted by tugs, will then ferry the oil through the Douglas Channel and from there to Asian and U.S. markets. Click here for an interactive map of the proposal.

Enbridge Inc., a Canadian company, is a North American leader in delivering energy and one of the 2011 Global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations. As a transporter of energy, Enbridge operates, in Canada and the U.S., the world's longest crude oil and liquids transportation system. The Company also has a growing involvement in the natural gas transmission and midstream businesses, and is expanding its interests in renewable and green energy technologies including wind and solar energy, hybrid fuel cells and carbon dioxide sequestration. As a distributor of energy, Enbridge owns and operates Canada's largest natural gas distribution company, and provides distribution services in Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick and New York State. Enbridge employs approximately 6,400 people, primarily in Canada and the U.S. ranked as one of Canada's Greenest Employers, and one of the Top 100 Companies to Work for in Canada. Enbridge's common shares trade on the Toronto and New York stock exchanges under the symbol ENB. For more information, visit enbridge.com