Aramco aims to restore half capacity within days and full capability in about six weeks after drone damage.
Saudi Arabia’s East-West pipeline was shut in mid-September after drone damage, removing a key route for the world’s biggest crude exporter as oil markets remain strained by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, Bloomberg reported.
State-run Saudi Aramco is seeking to restore the pipeline to about half capacity within days and full capability in roughly six weeks, according to a person familiar with the matter. Oil prices remain around $100 a barrel after initially rising on the disruption.
The 1,200-kilometer pipeline connects Saudi oil fields in the east with the Red Sea port of Yanbu. About 2 million barrels a day carried through the line is used domestically, mainly by refineries along the Red Sea.
Before the war, the pipeline moved about 2.8 million barrels a day against capacity of 7 million. Flows rose to the maximum after tanker traffic through Hormuz halted.
Yanbu shipments reached 4.7 million barrels a day in June, equivalent to about 5% of global supply, helping limit the oil-price surge.
Yanbu’s oil inventories are near historic lows, and Saudi Arabia has already delayed some deliveries to European buyers from the port. The kingdom is seeking to increase exports through Hormuz, but it is unclear how quickly those shipments can offset the pipeline disruption.
The line is vulnerable at 11 pumping stations where it rises above ground, although valves can isolate damaged sections and stations can be bypassed.
Houthi rebels and Iraqi militias have also threatened Saudi energy assets, raising the risk that exports from Yanbu could remain constrained even after the pipeline restarts if shipping through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait is restricted.
