Japanese refineries buy Oman crude after Saudi Arabia pipeline shutdown
Japanese oil refineries began buying Oman crude this week with earlier loading dates after the shutdown of a key pipeline in Saudi Arabia. Traders familiar with the purchases told Bloomberg, OilPrice reports.
East-West Pipeline shutdown
Late last week, Saudi Arabia was forced to temporarily shut down the East-West Pipeline after drone attacks. According to OilPrice, the attacks were carried out on Thursday from Iraqi territory near the border with Iran. Saudi Arabia called the shutdown a precautionary measure and said several people were injured in the attacks.
The 750-mile pipeline became an important route for Saudi Arabia to supply oil while bypassing the Strait of Hormuz after the conflict in the Middle East began and shipping through the strait ceased. Through this route, the kingdom redirected most oil cargoes from Persian Gulf ports to the Red Sea port of Yanbu.
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Uncertainty over supplies
Saudi Arabia has not released official information about the extent of the damage or the timeline for repairing the pipeline. Two regional officials briefed on the situation told the Associated Press that repairs could take from three to five weeks.
At the same time, US Energy Secretary Chris Wright said on Tuesday that the pipeline could resume operations within a few days. Asian refiners are still uncertain about how the shutdown will affect oil shipments from Yanbu. As of Monday, at least four Asian refineries had not received clarification from Saudi Arabia; two of them expected to collect cargoes on schedule if no notice of delays was received in the coming hours or days.
