Saudi Arabia has restored crude flow through its East-West oil pipeline after drone attacks forced a shutdown, with exports from the Red Sea port of Yanbu expected to resume later Tuesday, three sources familiar with the matter said.
The pipeline was taken offline on September 13 after drone strikes disrupted Saudi oil infrastructure, forcing the kingdom to suspend crude loadings at Yanbu.
The resumption of supplies has also affected global oil prices, with traders saying renewed flows contributed to a decline of more than $2 a barrel in Brent crude futures, pushing prices to their lowest level since September 8.
Saudi Arabia has been using the pipeline to transport crude to Yanbu and bypass disruptions affecting shipments through the Strait of Hormuz following the conflict involving Iran.
The pipeline has been carrying about 4 million barrels of crude per day, representing roughly 4% of global oil supply.
However, two sources said pumping remained below normal levels after operations resumed. One source said Saudi Aramco was working to restore flows to about 4 million barrels per day, while a security source said returning to full capacity could take several weeks.
The resumed pipeline operations are expected to restore crude supplies to Aramco refineries along Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea coast.
One source said a crude cargo was scheduled to load at Yanbu later Tuesday, with China identified as its destination.
Meanwhile, two trading sources said market participants were preparing for the return of Saudi crude shipments by positioning tankers near Egypt’s Mediterranean port of Port Said for ship to ship transfers and at Sidi Kerir.
Goodness Anunobi
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