Saudi Arabia is exporting crude oil via the Red Sea as usual despite Houthi attacks on vessels in the region, a senior Aramco official told Bloomberg.
“We’re moving in the Red Sea with our oil and products cargoes,” Mohammed Al Qahtani, head of Aramco’s refining, oil trading and marketing division said, adding that the risks were “manageable”.
Saudis Continue Sending Oil via Tense Red Sea
by Bloomberg|Matthew Martin & Anthony Di Paola|Friday, January 26, 2024
Share
submit to reddit
email print
Saudis Continue Sending Oil via Tense Red Sea
Aramco is bucking threats on Red Sea vessels from Yemen’s Houthi rebels.
Image by sandsun via iStock
Saudi Aramco, the world’s largest oil company, is continuing to send tanker loads of crude and fuels through the southern Red Sea, where Houthi militants have for months been menacing merchant ships in response to Israel’s war in Gaza.
More oil and gas tankers are now being diverted away from the Red Sea, with some companies and producers avoiding the route. Among the latest, Qatar appears to be sending liquefied natural gas vessels to Europe via the longer route around Africa
Some industry experts believe conflict in the Middle East may cause gas prices in the U.S. to increase over the next six months to a year.
Japanese shipping operator Nippon Yusen has become the latest among dozens of shipping companies to suspend sailings through the Red Sea.
Beijing has so far remained tight-lipped about the raging war between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip despite China being Israel’s second-largest trading partner.
Beijing has called for an end to attacks on civilian vessels in the Red Sea.
US President Joe Biden and the World Bank are worried global oil prices could surge even higher if conflict in the Middle East escalates, as the Israel-Gaza war continues and as US and UK attacks on the Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen attempt to blunt their ability to target commercial shipping in the Red Sea.
Crude prices spiked more than 4% before ebbing somewhat after the allies launched deadly strikes following weeks of disruptive rebel attacks on Red Sea shipping
Shipping disruptions across the Red Sea threaten global trade after major shippers, such as Maersk and others, have rerouted vessels.
As of Monday, QatarEnergy, one of the world’s largest LNG exporters has stopped shipping cargoes through the Red Sea.
Possible delays or disruptions of LNG shipments from Qatar are not a concern to European traders yet.
National average gasoline prices rose 0.6 cents from a week ago, hitting $3.04 on Sunday.
The national average price for diesel in the U.S. has seen a 2-cent drop in the last week, now at $3.89 per gallon.
GasBuddy: the escalating situation in the Red Sea created significant volatility.
Qatar paused sending liquefied natural gas tankers through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait after US-led airstrikes on Houthi targets in Yemen raised risks in the vital waterway.