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Saudi oil reroutes strain capacity as Red Sea route becomes risky

The shift increased Yanbu exports to about 2.47 million bpd in March, then loadings fell to around 2.39 million bpd by June as Red Sea diversions proved unstable.

Reported · Written up by our desk · Energy

OilPrice reports that after Iran disrupted traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, Saudi Arabia redirected oil flows to the Red Sea. With the route later made dangerous by the Houthi blockade, Saudi has rerouted shipments toward Egypt.

According to the outlet, the change has involved moving crude through alternative corridors as risks mount at key maritime nodes. OilPrice cites damage to two LNG tankers at the Egyptian port of Damietta from drone strikes.

OilPrice also describes how Saudi first moved volumes from the Persian Gulf to Yanbu on its western shores, using the Petroline pipeline system. The reroute pushed Yanbu exports to roughly 2.47 million bpd in March, up about 330% versus pre-war levels, according to Windward data.

By April, Saudi was shipping more than 4 million barrels daily from Yanbu, OilPrice says. The outlet adds that Red Sea diversions later weakened, with Yanbu loadings falling to around 2.39 million barrels daily by June, a decline of 41% from the March peak and 66% from January’s total Saudi export level of about 7.96 million bpd across Gulf and Red Sea terminals, citing Wood Mackenzie.

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