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Saudi crude exports from Yanbu drop 41% from March peak

Yanbu loadings fell to about 2.39 million bpd by June, down from 4.07 million bpd in March, as Red Sea shipping risk weighed on the export route.

Reported · Written up by our desk · Energy

Saudi Arabia has seen a sharp decline in crude exports flowing through its Yanbu Red Sea terminal, with volumes falling 41% from a March peak to about 2.39 million barrels per day by June, according to Wood Mackenzie vessel tracking and cargo data cited by OilPrice.

The article attributes part of the shift to the start of the Iran war, when Saudi Arabia redirected nearly all crude exports through its East-West pipeline to Yanbu on the Red Sea. Despite that near-total concentration, Yanbu loadings declined steadily from the March high.

Wood Mackenzie data analyst Ian Solis said the market treated Yanbu as a solution to Hormuz risk, but that Yanbu has its own chokepoint. He warned that if Bab al-Mandeb faces sustained disruption, Asia could lose a major crude supply artery.

This week, OilPrice reports that Iran-aligned Houthis appeared to act on pledges to target Saudi oil exports in the Red Sea and the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, with the group saying it struck two Saudi tankers late Wednesday.

Latest closeWTI crude $92.23 ▲6.2%

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