Damage to Saudi pipeline raises fears of oil supply disruption
The Guardian has reported that damage left by an attack on Saudi Arabia’s main oil pipeline has increased concerns about disruptions to oil supplies and a drop in the country’s exports. According to the report, the pipeline, which carries oil from eastern Saudi Arabia to the Red Sea, has not yet been brought back into operation.
Citing satellite images, The Guardian said one of the pumping stations along the pipeline was severely damaged. The newspaper said Saudi officials have also not made public details of the damage to this strategic route.
The report said some of Saudi Arabia’s oil customers are worried that the country’s dedicated export reserves may soon run out. The Guardian added that a continued shutdown of the route could affect 4% of the world’s oil supply.
Three industry sources also said the Yanbu terminal has enough stock for only another five to seven days of oil exports. Saudi Arabia has also stored some oil at the Ain Sokhna port on the Red Sea and at Sidi Kerir in the Mediterranean, but these reserves will also not last long without a resumption of pipeline operations.
Earlier, Russian media outlet RT wrote that the significance of the incident is not limited to the shutdown of a single pipeline, but that one of Saudi Arabia’s alternative oil export routes in the event of disruption in the Strait of Hormuz has also been affected. Saudi Arabia’s East-West pipeline is considered one of the country’s key oil transport routes to the port of Yanbu on the Red Sea coast.
