An important pipeline crossing Saudi Arabia from east to west, a central artery for the country's crude oil exports, has been the target of a drone attack this Wednesday, according to several sources familiar with the situation who confirmed to Financial Times. The incident occurred at one of the system's pumping stations, which extends for more than 1,200 kilometers from the oil fields of the Persian Gulf to the Red Sea coast.
The infrastructure, owned and operated by the state oil company Saudi Aramco, has acquired in recent months critical importance for the flow of Saudi exports after the effective closure of transit through the Strait of Hormuz, a scene of growing tensions in the regional conflict. Saudi Arabia has depended on this pipeline to divert shipments to its terminal in Yanbu, allowing it to maintain crude oil exports despite disruptions in traditional maritime routes.
Three people with direct knowledge of the facts have reported that a pumping station was hit by a drone around 1:00 PM (local time). A preliminary damage assessment was underway, while other interlocutors indicated that there were backup stations that could allow the crude flow to be maintained and avoid immediate disruptions to exports although the final assessment was ongoing.
The Saudi Ministry of Defense reports nine drones in the last hours
From Saudi Aramco, the company has not issued comments about the attack nor its operational impact. The Saudi Ministry of Defense reported having intercepted nine drones in recent hours, without specifying the locations or the concrete targets of the attacks.
This episode occurs just one day after Donald Trump and Iran agreed to a two-week ceasefire, conditioned on the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz and the cessation of attacks against Gulf states.
The Kuwaiti army has reported that since early Wednesday morning it was facing “an intense wave” of Iranian attacks aimed at energy facilities and desalination plants, which had caused “significant damage”. The forces of the United Arab Emirates announced for their part that their air defense systems had intercepted 17 ballistic missiles and 35 drones since the start of the ceasefire, figures consistent with the level of aggressions of previous days.
From Iran, the state-owned crude oil refining and distribution company has reported that the Lavan oil refinery has been attacked, calling the incident an act of aggression by “hostile forces”. Other states in the region, such as Qatar and Bahrain, have also reported the interception of Iranian missiles and drones.