Saudi Arabia Resumes Yanbu Crude Loadings After Pipeline Restart

Key Facts

1Saudi Arabia has resumed crude oil loadings at the Yanbu port following the partial restart of the East-West pipeline.

2The pipeline was shut down for two weeks following drone attacks on pumping stations on September 10.

Saudi Arabia has resumed crude oil loadings at the Yanbu port following the partial restart of the East-West pipeline. Reuters reported that the resumption follows a two-week shutdown of the pipeline triggered by drone attacks on pumping stations on September 10, 2026. This restart restores the Kingdom's ability to export crude via the Red Sea, bypassing the Strait of Hormuz.

The previous shutdown hindered Saudi Aramco's logistics, and while partial service has returned, oilprice.com reported that restoring the full capacity of approximately 4 million barrels per day will likely take weeks. This supply recovery follows earlier data from September 22, 2026, which showed a 1.786 million barrel increase in US crude oil stocks according to API estimates.