Saudi oil pipeline nears full capacity as Houthi strikes threaten Red Sea exports

Saudi Arabia has restored its vital East-West oil pipeline to near-full capacity, but escalating Houthi attacks on energy facilities, airports and transport infrastructure are raising fresh concerns over the security of its oil exports.

Saudi Arabia has restored its vital East-West oil pipeline to near-full capacity, but escalating Houthi attacks on energy facilities, airports and transport infrastructure are raising fresh concerns over the security of its oil exports.

The pipeline, a crucial alternative to the Strait of Hormuz, is now transporting 5.8 million barrels of oil a day after a September attack forced a temporary shutdown. However, a month of strikes on Saudi energy and transport infrastructure has raised questions about how long operations can remain stable.

Saudi Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman said the pipeline had resumed operations within five or six days of the attack. By Tuesday, flows had reached 5.8 million barrels a day.

The 1,200-kilometre pipeline stretches from Saudi Arabia’s eastern oilfields to the Red Sea port of Yanbu and has a maximum capacity of around 7 million barrels a day.

It provides Riyadh with a vital alternative when shipments through the Strait of Hormuz are disrupted, as they have been amid the war involving Iran. Saudi Arabia has been sending around 4 million barrels a day towards Yanbu, equivalent to approximately 4 per cent of global oil supply.

A month of strikes on Saudi infrastructure

The September shutdown followed a drone attack that Saudi Arabia said originated in Iraq. Authorities suspended operations while the pipeline was inspected and secured.

Reuters reported that the pipeline had been transporting between 4 million and 5 million barrels a day before the shutdown.

AFP later published satellite images taken on 13 September showing fires at a pumping station southeast of Medina, following what the agency described as a Houthi attack.

The strikes soon spread to other strategic sites.

In late September, Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree said the group had struck an Aramco facility in Yanbu and the Khamis Mushait airbase using missiles and drones.

Saudi Arabia said it had intercepted six ballistic missiles targeting Taif and the Yanbu area, adding that no Aramco facilities had been damaged.

On 29 September, the Saudi-led coalition reported a Houthi attack on a power station in Medina, one of Islam’s holiest cities.

Days later, on 3 October, a large plume of smoke and flames rose near an Aramco refinery south of Riyadh.

The Houthis claimed responsibility, saying they had targeted the facility with ballistic missiles and drones in retaliation for Saudi air raids on Yemen.

Saudi authorities did not immediately confirm the attack, while a coalition spokesman dismissed the Houthi claims as “misleading.”

Airports targeted as conflict escalates

The attacks have also disrupted Saudi Arabia’s aviation sector.

On Wednesday, Houthi strikes on Saudi airports killed three people and injured 36, according to Time.

Flights at Riyadh’s King Khalid International Airport were suspended for around two hours following one strike, The National reported.

By Thursday, Saudi airports had come under attack for three consecutive days. One strike damaged a Saudia aircraft, while explosions were heard in Riyadh, prompting some office workers to stay at home.

Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree warned airlines “for the last time” to stop operating in Saudi airspace, describing it as a “theater” of Houthi operations.

Saudi Arabia has not confirmed the latest reported strike on Riyadh airport.

Lufthansa and Air India have suspended flights to the Saudi capital, while the U.S. Mission in Saudi Arabia warned Americans that the conflict “has the potential to escalate.”

In a televised address on Thursday, Houthi leader Abdul Malik al-Houthi warned Riyadh to prepare for a prolonged conflict.

The Saudi-led coalition said the attacks “will not go unpunished” and reported destroying 82 Houthi military sites in Saada, Hodeidah, Jawf and Marib.

Meanwhile, the Houthis said Saudi warplanes had carried out 59 strikes across Sanaa and several provinces within 24 hours.

The escalating violence has deepened Yemen’s humanitarian crisis, with the UN reporting that at least 150,000 people have fled their homes.

Why the Red Sea is crucial to Saudi oil exports

The growing threat to Saudi Arabia’s oil infrastructure extends beyond the pipeline itself.

Yemeni government forces, backed by Riyadh, have launched an offensive known as “Dawn of Yemen” to retake territory around the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, a strategic shipping route connecting the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden.

The area has been under Houthi control, making it a key flashpoint in the conflict.

Pakistan has confirmed that it has troops stationed in Saudi Arabia, while Türkiye says it is assessing possible assistance under a defence pact.

For Riyadh, the challenge is increasingly complex. Although the East-West Pipeline allows oil shipments to bypass the Strait of Hormuz, exports from Yanbu must still travel through the Red Sea, where the conflict threatens maritime security.

Oil markets face growing uncertainty

The escalating attacks have unsettled global energy markets, with traders increasingly concerned about potential supply disruptions.

Oil prices rose sharply this week as strikes across the Gulf and reduced flows through the Strait of Hormuz fuelled fears of tighter supplies.

Brent crude climbed above $105 a barrel on Thursday, according to the Financial Times.

For now, Saudi Arabia's East-West Pipeline is transporting nearly 6 million barrels a day, demonstrating Riyadh’s ability to restore critical energy infrastructure after an attack.

But the bigger question is whether Saudi Arabia can keep its oil flowing if strikes continue to threaten pipelines, ports and the shipping routes on which its exports depend.

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Saudi Arabia houthis Hormuz military strikes Saudi Aramco Yemen