Saudi Arabian port of Yanbu resumes oil loading - Reuters
Kyiv • UNN
Oil loading in Saudi Arabia has resumed after personnel were evacuated due to a drone crash. Damage to the SAMREF plant is assessed as minimal.
Saudi Arabia's oil loading at the Red Sea port of Yanbu resumed after a brief halt that caused oil prices to jump. Two sources told Reuters on Thursday, writes UNN.
Details
Loading was halted after personnel were evacuated, one of the sources said, after a drone crashed at Saudi Aramco's SAMREF refinery in the port on Thursday.
It is noted that the impact on the plant was minimal, but the damage is still being assessed.
Aramco, the world's largest oil exporter, is trying to increase crude oil exports through Yanbu to compensate for supply disruptions through the Strait of Hormuz, with loading volumes expected to reach record levels in March. Most shipments are destined for Asia.
Earlier, Iran warned that the SAMREF plant could be attacked in response to an Israeli attack on its South Pars gas field, which was a significant escalatory step in the war with the US and Israel.
Recall
The Saudi Arabian Ministry of Defense announced on Thursday the interception of an Iranian missile targeting the strategic oil port of Yanbu - one of two main export points for oil from the region amid the Iranian blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, as well as a drone attack on the SAMREF refinery.