Saudi Arabia Restarts Red Sea Oil Exports Amid Ongoing Hormuz Disruptions

Saudi Arabia's East-West Pipeline has resumed operations after being shut down on September 11 due to drone attacks. The pipeline, also known as Petroline, provides a route for moving crude from Saudi Arabia's eastern oil-producing region to the Red Sea, allowing barrels to bypass the Strait of Hormuz.

With the pipeline back in operation, Saudi Aramco has resumed loadings from the Yanbu port and notified customers of its October loading schedule. This move is expected to provide an alternative export route as shipments through the Strait of Hormuz remain heavily constrained.

Kpler estimates that pipeline throughput is currently lower than normal at around 2.65 million barrels per day, but expects flows to rise to between 3 million and 4 million bpd in the coming days. A full recovery to the pre-attack rate of roughly 5.5 million bpd could take another month.