Saudi Arabia resumes oil loading at Red Sea terminals after pipeline restoration
Saudi Arabia resumes oil loading at Red Sea terminals after pipeline restoration. According to Kpler data and satellite imagery, nine oil tankers have loaded around 12.5 million barrels of crude along the Red Sea coast since Sunday, with three vessels completing loading operations in the past 24 hours.
The renewed activity is seen as the clearest indication yet that Saudi Arabia's East-West Pipeline has returned to operation at least partially. Reuters also reported on September 29 that crude loading at Yanbu had resumed following the pipeline's restart.
The pipeline plays a strategic role in Saudi oil exports because it carries crude from fields in the east of the country to the Red Sea port of Yanbu, allowing shipments to bypass the Strait of Hormuz. Its maximum capacity is around 7 million barrels per day, with up to 5 million barrels per day available for export.
Two sources familiar with repair work said flows through the pipeline had been restored to around 3.5 million barrels per day. Reuters had earlier estimated post-restart throughput at around 2–2.65 million barrels per day, with volumes expected to rise to 3–4 million barrels per day in the following days. Neither the Saudi Energy Ministry nor state-owned Saudi Aramco has publicly commented on the reported level of restored flows.
On September 11, the Saudi Energy Ministry said the East-West Pipeline had been temporarily shut down as a precaution following several attacks in the Riyadh and Medina regions. Technical and emergency teams were deployed to inspect the infrastructure and assess its safety.
Saudi civilian and energy infrastructure has faced repeated attacks in recent weeks amid continuing regional hostilities. Saudi authorities have reported strikes on energy facilities, while the Houthis have also claimed attacks on Saudi targets.
According to CCTV+, the restoration of the East-West Pipeline is particularly important for Saudi exports because it allows crude to reach the Red Sea without passing through the Strait of Hormuz. The resumption of loading at Yanbu indicates a gradual recovery of one of the region's key alternative oil export routes.
