Saudi Aramco eyes restoration of East-West pipeline damaged in Houthi attacks within days | Today’s news
Saudi Aramco, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s state-owned oil and gas company, is likely to restore about half the capacity of its cross-border pipeline within days, a person familiar with the matter told Bloomberg.
The East-West Pipeline, a crucial 1,200 kilometer network that runs to the Red Sea port of Yanbu, has been crucial to Saudi Arabia’s efforts to divert oil to onshore refineries following restrictions on transit through the Strait of Hormuz.
Attack on the East-West Pipeline
The East-West Pipeline was targeted by an attack allegedly by Houthi drones launched from inside Iraq on Friday, forcing Saudi Arabia to shut it down. Although the extent of the damage was unclear, it was initially estimated that the shutdown could last for weeks.
On Tuesday, Reuters, citing business sources , said Saudi Arabia had cut crude supplies to Europe after the drone strikes, prompting top customers such as Poland to scramble to find alternatives as cargo prices topped $120 a barrel.
According to the report, Saudi Arabia has informed European customers that some September crude loadings will be canceled and crude loading at the Red Sea port of Yanbu has been suspended.
It added that the kingdom may explore the possibility of exporting more oil through the Strait of Hormuz using so-called dark shipments similar to those already used by the United Arab Emirates and Iraq.
Such supplies allowed Gulf oil producers to export 7 million to 9 million barrels per day, 30% to 40% of pre-war volumes.
The Bloomberg report added that Saudi Arabia sold about 20 million barrels this week to Asian refiners, including China, for pickup in September and October, according to traders familiar with the matter.
Saudis vs Houthis
Last week, the Iran-backed Houthis launched a major offensive in Yemen, capturing the Red Sea port city of Mocha and Perim, an island at the mouth of the Bab al-Mandeb Strait. The Houthis and the Saudis have been at loggerheads for a long time, and in July the militia, which controls nearly one-third of Yemen’s territory, imposed a naval embargo on Saudi Arabia targeting vessels bound for Saudi ports or oil supplies.
On Wednesday, Reuters reported that US officials met with Houthi representatives in Oman over the weekend. The meeting, which was not made public, took place at the US embassy in Muscat, three of the sources told Reuters.
The Trump administration designated the Houthis a “foreign terrorist organization” in March 2025, criminalizing support for the group. But Washington has since been negotiating with them, reaching a truce in May last year after bombing the group for two months to halt a campaign of attacks on shipping in the Red Sea.
President Donald Trump said Saturday that the Houthis called his administration and asked the United States to stay out of the war in Yemen. Vice President JD Vance said on Monday that the US was in direct contact with the group, without giving details.
