Aramco Offers Spot Cargoes to Europe as Brent Seen at $105 in Fourth Quarter

Key Facts

Saudi Aramco offered additional crude oil cargoes for prompt delivery to Europe from late October through mid-November 2026, according to three trading sources cited by Reuters in a report published by MarketScreener. The offer puts additional volumes into the European market from the end of October to mid-November. Aramco did not comment on the offer, the report said. The move follows disruption to the East-West pipeline, which Saudi Arabia shut as a precaution after it was targeted in September. The cargoes are significant in a market where buyers have competed for nearby supplies, while available evidence does not detail cargo volumes, crude grades or buyers.

The Saudi Press Agency said on 11 September that the East-West pipeline had been shut as a precaution after multiple attacks in the Riyadh and Madinah regions on the morning of 10 September. The agency cited an Energy Ministry statement saying the pipeline had been targeted and the shutdown decision was taken as a precaution. The pipeline extends about 1,200 kilometers and carries oil from eastern Saudi Arabia to the Red Sea, avoiding passage through the Strait of Hormuz, according to the Associated Press. Before the September attacks, it carried more than 5 million barrels per day of exports through the port of Yanbu, according to an estimate by the U.S. Energy Information Administration. That volume highlights the route's role in moving oil to the Red Sea, while the offer of additional European cargoes followed disruption to the pipeline.

Oil prices reached elevated levels in September as competition for nearby supplies intensified. The U.S. Energy Information Administration estimated the average spot price of Brent crude at $114 per barrel that month, up $23 from the August average. The daily price reached $131 per barrel on 15 September, the highest daily level cited in the report, as buyers competed for volumes available for prompt delivery. On 14 September, Brent was trading above $105 per barrel, according to an Associated Press report. These prices place Aramco's offer in a period marked by higher spot crude values and buyers seeking nearby supplies, without the report specifying the cargoes' effect on European prices or their volume.

In its outlook for the fourth quarter of 2026, the U.S. Energy Information Administration said the average Brent price could reach $105 per barrel, up $14 from its forecast in the previous month's report. The estimate is for the fourth-quarter average and does not set a target price for each day or each cargo. It also follows an average of $114 per barrel in September, when spot crude rose $23 compared with August. The cargo deliveries cited by the trading sources are scheduled from late October to mid-November, within the fourth quarter. Aramco shares closed at 26.08 Saudi riyals on 27 October 2026, according to EL7 data; the data did not include the daily trading range or link the share movement directly to the offer.