Saudi Arabia reportedly plans to restore half the capacity of its critical pipeline within several days; secret U.S.–Houthi contacts have surfaced.

Saudi Arabia is urgently working to repair its energy arteries disrupted by drone attacks, while geopolitical maneuvering around the Red Sea and Bab el-Mandeb Strait quietly intensifies. According to CCTV News, citing U.S. sources on Wednesday, September 16, U.S. officials recently held talks with representatives of Yemen’s Houthi movement in Muscat, the capital of Oman. The meeting reportedly took place at the U.S. Embassy in Muscat over the weekend of September 12–13. Reuters, citing informed sources, reported that during the talks, the Houthis told the U.S. side they do not intend to attack American or Israeli vessels and claimed they would abide by the 2025 bilateral ceasefire agreement. One Yemeni source said the Houthis also pledged not to target any commercial vessels—except those belonging to Saudi Arabia. None of these reports has yet been officially confirmed by any party. Recent reporting indicates that, under pressure from the pipeline shutdown and the forced rerouting of export flows, Saudi Arabia is striving to restore approximately half the capacity of its East–West Pipeline within several days, while simultaneously ramping up spot sales near the Strait of Hormuz. Meanwhile, a previously little-known channel of contact between the United States and the Houthis has come to light—adding further uncertainty to an already highly tense maritime region. This signal of engagement has complicated market assessments of the Red Sea situation. London-traded Brent crude prices have surged above $107 per barrel; the earlier pipeline disruption had placed millions of barrels per day of exports at risk. Saudi Aramco’s increased spot sales near the Strait of Hormuz—and the informal U.S.–Houthi contacts—both point toward a situation still fraught with high uncertainty: Saudi Arabia is bearing the pressure alone, while Washington’s stance remains ambiguous. Pipeline bypass efforts underway, full restoration targeted in six weeks According to Bloomberg, citing an anonymous source familiar with the matter due to its sensitivity, Saudi Aramco is implementing measures to bypass the damaged section of the East–West Pipeline, aiming to restore about half its capacity within several days and achieve full operational resumption in approximately six weeks. Neither Saudi Aramco nor the Saudi Ministry of Energy has commented publicly on this plan. The East–West Pipeline traverses Saudi Arabia from east to west, linking the country’s eastern oilfields with the Red Sea port of Yanbu. During periods when the Strait of Hormuz was threatened—for instance, amid Iranian military tensions—the pipeline served as a vital alternative route for Saudi exports, helping the kingdom avoid Strait-related risks. Following last week’s drone strike—which halted pipeline operations—the question of how much oil can be moved, and when operations will resume, has become a core variable closely tracked by crude traders. At present, the above timeline reflects Aramco’s internal targets—not official commitments. Aramco pivots to Hormuz, launching large-scale spot sales to Asian buyers In response to the East–West Pipeline shutdown, Aramco has swiftly adjusted its export strategy. According to Bloomberg, citing multiple traders familiar with the transactions, Aramco sold roughly 20 million barrels of crude oil to Asian refiners this week, with loading and delivery scheduled for September–October outside the Strait of Hormuz. Buyers include Chinese refineries and other East Asian importers. These cargoes are being loaded via ship-to-ship transfers in the Gulf of Oman—meaning the buyer’s pickup location lies outside the Strait of Hormuz, and the shipping risk associated with transiting the Strait falls on the seller, not the buyer. Meanwhile, Aramco has also delayed some deliveries originally scheduled for European customers—and at least one East Asian refinery—from the Red Sea port of Yanbu. The scale of these delays remains unclear.

Gulf Beijing Investment: Full restoration of Saudi Arabia’s East–West Pipeline still expected to take several weeks.

Latest vessel-tracking data and satellite imagery show that Saudi Arabia has resumed crude oil loading at the Al Muajjiz crude terminal in Yanbu, on the Red Sea coast. This signals the beginning of the reconnection of Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea export chain following the restoration of the East–West Pipeline. Al Muajjiz is one of Yanbu’s most important crude loading facilities—and serves as the primary export hub for oil delivered via the East–West Pipeline to the Red Sea coast. Prior to the pipeline’s shutdown, loading activity at Yanbu declined markedly, prompting Saudi Arabia to redirect more exports back to ports along the Persian Gulf coast. Vessel-tracking data shows that the Saudi-flagged Very Large Crude Carrier (VLCC) AMAD has listed the Yanbu Industrial City as its destination. With a deadweight tonnage of approximately 298,700 tons, AMAD belongs to the VLCC class. Meanwhile, recent information confirms that crude loading operations have resumed at the Al Muajjiz terminal. For comparison, satellite imagery from September 16 showed no VLCCs berthed at Al Muajjiz’s main loading berth—a stark contrast to its normal capacity, which typically allows simultaneous handling of multiple large tankers. This resumption thus marks a more concrete step forward in Yanbu’s export recovery. Although markets had already confirmed that Saudi Arabia had restarted the East–West Pipeline, there remains an important distinction between pipeline flow resumption and actual reloading at export terminals. The restart of operations at Al Muajjiz signifies that crude oil has re-entered the full logistical chain—from eastern oilfields, through the East–West Pipeline to the Red Sea, and onward to seaborne export. Gulf Beijing Investment Co., Ltd. notes that Saudi Arabia has previously restarted its East–West Pipeline, linking the eastern oil-producing region with Yanbu.

Saudi Arabia’s Key Oil Pipeline Starts Exports After Repairs

Sep 28, 2026

Saudi Aramco has resumed oil exports through its repaired East-West pipeline following recent drone strikes. The restoration aims to stabilize supply amid geopolitical tensions and oil prices exceeding $107 per barrel.

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