EL7.AI
CommoditiesMediumUpdated×2•Originally published 13 September 2026•Updated 13 September 2026•
2 min read

Saudi East-West Pipeline Closure Halts Route Carrying 4%-5% of Global Oil Supply

Saudi Arabian flag next to a leaking oil pipeline, barrels with a 4% drop symbol, and a globe background.

Key Facts

1The East-West Pipeline was shut as a precaution after attacks on the morning of September 10, 2026.
2The pipeline carried between 4 million and 5 million barrels per day, or 4%-5% of global supply, in recent months.
3The pipeline is 1,200 kilometers long and has a maximum capacity of 7 million barrels per day.

Saudi Arabia shut the East-West Pipeline as a precaution after multiple attacks in the Riyadh and Madinah regions on the morning of September 10, 2026, according to an Energy Ministry statement published on September 11, 2026. Emergency and technical teams began securing the line and assessing its integrity.

The pipeline had carried between 4 million and 5 million barrels per day in recent months, equivalent to 4%-5% of global oil supply, according to ship-tracking data and analyst estimates reported by Reuters. That percentage measures flows through the route before its closure, not a confirmed loss of the same share of global production.

The 1,200-kilometer East-West Pipeline crosses the Arabian Peninsula, connecting production facilities in eastern Saudi Arabia with Yanbu on the Red Sea coast. Aramco says it has a maximum capacity of 7 million barrels per day and enables crude and product exports through alternative routes.

The pipeline became especially important during the first half of 2026 as shipping through the Strait of Hormuz was disrupted. Aramco said it used the East-West Pipeline, storage capacity and export terminals to sustain production and exports, making the line a central part of its supply-network flexibility.

The closure removes that logistical route while the pipeline remains offline, but it does not by itself establish that all previous throughput has been lost. The net supply effect depends on the duration of the shutdown, available inventories and the ability to redirect shipments through other facilities.

As of September 13, 2026, Saudi authorities had not announced a restart date or quantified any production loss caused by the attacks. The Energy Ministry said technical teams were assessing the pipeline's integrity and that further developments would be announced.