Yanbu Crude Loadings Resume as Saudi Arabia Restarts East-West Pipeline

Saudi Arabia has resumed crude oil loadings at its Red Sea port of Yanbu after restarting the East-West Pipeline, which allows the country to move more oil without sending it through the Strait of Hormuz.

Crude loadings at Yanbu have been around 2 million barrels per day since last week, according to estimates from two trade sources. The pipeline had been shut after drone attacks damaged pumping stations on September 10 and was restarted on an unspecified date, but it is not yet operating at its earlier level.

Kpler estimates that the pipeline is currently carrying about 2.65 million bpd, and expects flows to increase to between 3 million and 4 million bpd in the coming days. The return to the pipeline's earlier capacity of about 5.5 million bpd could take another month.

The Strait of Hormuz remains heavily affected by the conflict between the United States and Iran, with nearly 20% of the world's oil supply moving through the strait before the conflict.