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Saudi Arabia’s oil exports are going strong and holding near war-time highs despite the ongoing wave of attacks from the Iran-backed Houthi rebels, according to maritime tracking firms.
Saudi Arabia, the region’s largest oil exporter, shipped about 6.5 million barrels a day so far in October, around the same volume flowing last month, according to Vortexa.
The high traffic estimates were echoed by Kpler and TankerTrackers.com, demonstrating the kingdom’s ability to adapt in the face of the Houthi’s relentless missile and drone attacks on its oil infrastructure.
After a Houthi attack caused the Saudi’s East-West pipeline to shut down last month, Riyadh began to increase its shipments back to the Strait of Hormuz, where traffic is pushing towards pre-war levels under a US naval escort.
Saudi Aramco, one of the world’s largest energy companies, also increased its Red Sea exports to 2.5 million barrels a day, up 100,000 barrels from September, Bloomberg reported.
With the pipeline now up and running, the kingdom has seen an October boom that helped offset any drop in flow caused by the Houthi attacks, according to the estimates from the firms.
The boost in flow has also allowed Saudi Arabia to take advantage of the sky-high oil prices caused by the war to further combat the loss in revenue caused by the Houthi attacks on its airports.
Despite the strong showing in October, the Houthis continue to bombard the kingdom, with the rebel group claiming responsibility Tuesday for a fire that broke out at the Ras Tanura oil refinery.
The facility is the largest of its kind in the nation and capable of refining 550,000 barrels a day.
The rebel group allegedly fired a ballistic missile at the facility, along with additional strikes reported at the Najran Airport and an airbase in Khamis Mushait, Houthis military spokesperson Yahya Saree claimed.
Saudi officials have remained silent about the attack.
The ongoing strikes have kept oil prices persistently high, with Brent crude futures hitting $115 a barrel on Wednesday.
Traders and investors are also dealing with difficult calculations as many of the ships carrying oil out of the Persian Gulf are shutting off their transponders to hide their locations, which makes tracking their cargo difficult.
