Saudi East-West oil pipeline is said to be flowing as normal

Published Tue, Oct 6, 2026 · 06:24 AM

SAUDI Arabia’s key cross-country oil pipeline is operating normally, people familiar with the matter said, after a report that it had shut following a new attack.

Oil continues to flow through the East-West link, the people said, asking not to be identified discussing private information.

The conduit was halted after a fresh strike on a pumping station along the route over the weekend, AFP reported on Monday (Oct 5), citing an unidentified source in the kingdom’s energy sector.

Saudi Aramco and the energy ministry did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Oil prices that jumped as much as 1.2 per cent after the AFP report eased following news of the normal operations.

Aramco had ramped up supplies through the seven million barrel-a-day pipeline to over 80 per cent of capacity by late last week, bringing back much of the link after it was attacked by drones launched from Iraq in September.

The link has served as a vital conduit for keeping oil flowing during the Iran war with shipments through the Red Sea without relying on risky journeys via the Strait of Hormuz.

After accounting for supplies to refineries on Saudi Arabia’s west coast, Aramco had about 4.5 million barrels a day of flows available for exports as at last week, according to a person familiar with the matter.

However, the Red Sea route has come under pressure in recent months with Yemen’s Houthi militants attacking tankers and Saudi infrastructure along the kingdom’s west coast.

The conflict in Yemen has escalated as Yemen’s internationally-recognised government launched a full-scale military campaign to recapture Houthi-held territory after weeks of escalating conflict between the militant group and Saudi Arabia. BLOOMBERG