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ConflictSaudi Red Sea crude exports plunge 41% from March peak amid Houthi blockade threats
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Saudi Arabia's crude exports from the Red Sea port of Yanbu have fallen 41% from a March peak of 4.07 million barrels per day (bpd) to about 2.39 million bpd in June, according to Wood Mackenzie vessel tracking data. The decline follows Saudi Arabia's redirection of virtually all crude exports through the East-West pipeline to Yanbu after the start of the Iran war, bypassing the Strait of Hormuz. However, the shift has exposed Saudi exports to new risks at the Bab el-Mandeb chokepoint, where Iran-aligned Houthi rebels have declared a naval blockade. This week, Houthis struck two Saudi tankers in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, escalating Middle East war tensions. Wood Mackenzie analyst Ian Solis noted that Yanbu's dependence on Bab el-Mandeb creates a strategic bottleneck, threatening crude supply to Asia if disruptions persist. The total Saudi export level fell 66% from January's 7.96 million bpd across both Gulf and Red Sea terminals.
Source report
Charles Kennedy Fri, July 24, 2026 at 9:30 AM PDT 2 min read
Saudi Arabia, which redirected virtually all crude exports through its East-West pipeline to Yanbu on the Red Sea at the start of the Iran war, has seen exports from Yanbu decline sharply. According to Wood Mackenzie vessel tracking and cargo data, crude exports from Yanbu fell to approximately 2.39 million barrels per day (bpd) by June, down 41% from a peak of 4.07 million bpd in March.
Despite the near-total concentration of exports through Yanbu, volumes have steadily declined from the March peak. By June, Yanbu loadings had dropped to around 2.39 million bpd—a 41% decrease from the March peak and a 66% slump compared to Saudi Arabia's total export level of about 7.96 million bpd in January, which included shipments from both Gulf and Red Sea terminals.
"For months, the market treated Yanbu as the answer to Hormuz risk," said Ian Solis, data analyst in Tech/Maritime-Ops for Wood Mackenzie.
"The problem is that Yanbu has its own chokepoint. If Bab al-Mandeb comes under sustained disruption from a declared Houthi naval blockade, Asia stands to lose a major crude supply artery," the analyst noted.
This week, the Iran-aligned Houthis appeared to make good on their pledge to target Saudi Arabia's oil exports from the Red Sea and the Bab el-Mandeb Strait.
The Red Sea oil chokepoint has been critical for Saudi crude oil shipments after the Kingdom managed in recent months to redirect exports that previously shipped from the Persian Gulf to Yanbu.
Yemen's Houthis, allies of Iran, said late Wednesday they had struck two Saudi tankers in the Bab el-Mandeb chokepoint in the latest Middle East war escalation, claiming the vessels had violated the naval blockade the group declared earlier this week.
The Saudi diversification away from the Strait of Hormuz may now mean dependence on another chokepoint in a war zone.
"What looked like diversification was in reality a shift from one strategic bottleneck to another," WoodMac's Solis said.
By Charles Kennedy for Oilprice.com
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Saudi Red Sea Crude Exports Plunge 41% Since March Peak Amid Houthi Blockade Threats