Saudi authorities say oil shipments transiting the Red Sea have so far continued at the same levels despite a drone attack that damaged a cross-country pipeline on Wednesday, according to a state news agency.
The incident struck one of the pipeline's 11 pumping stations along the 746-mile conduit that links the kingdom's eastern oilfields with its western Red Sea coast. An energy ministry official reported on Thursday that the strike cut the pipeline's throughput by 700,000 barrels a day.
Because oil requires several days to travel the length of the pipeline, any effect on exports from Red Sea terminals has not yet been observed. Terminals at Yanbu - the primary western export point served by the link - have not shown an immediate change in export volumes.
Officials say the kingdom could maintain current export levels despite the reduced throughput by lowering the volume of crude sent inland to domestic users that are also supplied through the pipeline. These domestic recipients include local refineries, power generation facilities and water desalination plants.
The east-west pipeline carries a nameplate capacity of 7 million barrels a day and is identified as the only major alternative route to shipping oil through the Strait of Hormuz. The conduit typically moves about 2 million barrels a day for use within Saudi Arabia, leaving a potential 5 million barrels a day available for export under normal conditions.
Operational context and immediate outlook
At present, the reported reduction of 700,000 barrels a day represents a temporary impact on the pipeline's throughput rather than a confirmed decline in exports. The delay between a disruption in the interior pipeline system and any observable change at coastal loading terminals means export figures could remain unchanged for several days while the pipeline's inventory and in-transit volumes are drawn down or reallocated.
Maintaining export volumes by adjusting internal deliveries would involve reallocating crude supplies away from domestic refineries, power plants and desalination operations, which could alter domestic crude distribution without immediately affecting seaborne shipments bound for international markets.
What is known
- The damaged pump station is one of 11 along a 746-mile pipeline linking eastern oilfields to the Red Sea coast.
- An energy ministry official reported a 700,000 barrels per day reduction in throughput following the attack.
- Exports from Yanbu have not yet reflected the pipeline damage because oil transit takes several days.