Yemen's Reciprocal Siege Cuts Saudi Oil Loading by 40%

Saudi Arabia's oil loading at the Red Sea port has plummeted by 40% amid Yemen's reciprocal siege, a maritime data intelligence firm has revealed. Windward cited analytics platform Vortexa in reporting that the blockade imposed on Saudi Arabia is causing significant losses.

The report noted that Riyadh had used an Egyptian pipeline to avoid the recently imposed Yemeni blockade. This alternative route via the SUMED pipeline and Cape of Good Hope adds approximately $9 per barrel to transport costs, according to Windward.

Saudi Arabia's efforts to bypass the blockade have not gone unnoticed, with major fires still burning at Saudi Aramco's Jazan Oil Refinery visible in SoarAtlas satellite imagery. Yemen's armed forces launched a series of coordinated operations targeting key oil infrastructure in Saudi Arabia, including the kingdom's most critical sites.