Saudi Arabia plans to expand oil pipeline — Asharq Al-Awsat

Saudi Arabia plans to increase the capacity of the East-West oil pipeline to 10 million barrels per day within two to three years. The country’s energy minister, Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman, announced this at the 25th WPC Energy Congress in Riyadh, Asharq Al-Awsat reports.

According to the minister, the pipeline is intended to provide an alternative route for oil supplies to foreign markets and strengthen the country’s ability to respond to risks affecting traditional routes. He said that Saudi Arabia would continue investing in oil and gas supplies, renewable energy, power grids, storage facilities, and gas infrastructure.

Additional export routes

Saudi Aramco President and CEO Amin Nasser said that the company, together with the Ministry of Energy, is exploring additional options for crude oil exports and the possibility of expanding oil storage capacity outside the kingdom. According to him, Aramco is also using technologies to inspect facilities, speed up repairs, and limit losses.

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Nasser said that more than 90% of the materials used to restore operations over the past eight months were procured domestically. In his assessment, this made it possible to carry out restoration work in hours or days instead of weeks or months.

Situation in the Strait of Hormuz

US Energy Secretary Chris Wright, who addressed the congress by video link, said that oil flows through the Strait of Hormuz had recovered to 80–90% of pre-conflict levels, or approximately 13–14 million barrels per day. At the same time, flows of petroleum products, he said, stand at 25–35% of pre-conflict levels. Wright also accused Iran of attempting to harm the region’s economies and its energy security.

OPEC Secretary General Haitham Al Ghais said that the organization expects global oil demand to grow by 1.7 million barrels per day in 2027. He described Saudi Arabia’s East-West oil pipeline as an example of advance preparation for energy security.