Saudi Arabia has brought its East–West crude pipeline to full capacity, pushing around 7 million barrels of oil per day across the kingdom as it works to maintain exports following the effective shutdown of the Strait of Hormuz, according to a person familiar with the matter.
The pipeline—stretching more than 1,000 kilometers from the country’s eastern oil fields to the Red Sea port of Yanbu—has become a critical alternative route. With shipments through the Persian Gulf severely disrupted, crude is now being rerouted westward, where tankers are loading for international markets.
Exports from Yanbu have climbed significantly, reaching roughly 5 million barrels per day, the source said. In addition, between 700,000 and 900,000 barrels per day of refined products are also being shipped from the Red Sea coast. Meanwhile, about 2 million barrels per day transported through the pipeline are being directed to domestic refineries.
Despite operating at full capacity, the pipeline cannot fully replace flows that previously passed through the Strait of Hormuz, which handled approximately 15 million barrels per day before the conflict. However, the availability of this alternative route has helped cushion global markets and limit the scale of price spikes compared to earlier supply disruptions.
Attention is now shifting toward the Red Sea, where new risks could emerge. Yemen’s Houthi group has indicated it is entering the conflict, raising concerns about the security of key maritime routes such as the Bab el-Mandeb strait. While there have been no confirmed plans to target vessels in the area, the group has previously demonstrated the capability to strike shipping using drones and missiles.
Saudi Arabia had long prepared for a scenario in which Hormuz could become inaccessible. That contingency planning was activated rapidly following the first U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran, with pipeline flows ramped up within hours.
Originally developed in the aftermath of tanker disruptions during the 1980s Iran–Iraq War, the East–West pipeline is now playing a central role in managing one of the most significant supply interruptions in decades.
