Saudi Arabia restarted the 7-million-barrel-per-day oil pipeline after drone attacks
Kyiv • UNN
The East-West oil pipeline was restarted at low capacity after three pumping stations were damaged. Full restoration will take up to 8 weeks.
Saudi Arabia has resumed operations of the East–West oil pipeline, which was shut down on September 11 following drone attacks. The kingdom is preparing to resume oil exports from the port of Yanbu on the Red Sea, Reuters reports, citing three sources, writes UNN.
Details
The pipeline is currently operating at low capacity. Saudi Aramco plans to gradually increase throughput to 4 million barrels per day, while the route’s maximum capacity is 7 million barrels.
According to the sources’ estimates, reaching 40% capacity will take several days. Full restoration of operations may require six to eight weeks.
Three pumping stations were damaged in the attack
Satellite imagery and data from Reuters sources indicate that three pumping stations were damaged in the drone attacks. The pipeline has 11 pumping stations in total, as well as two pressure-release stations.
After operations resume, the pipeline will once again supply oil to Saudi Aramco facilities on the Red Sea coast. On September 22, a shipment of oil was already scheduled to be loaded in Yanbu for delivery to China.
The East–West oil pipeline has gained particular importance due to disruptions in the transportation of oil through the Strait of Hormuz. Saudi Arabia uses this route to redirect about 4 million barrels per day to Yanbu—an amount equivalent to approximately 4% of the global oil supply.