AiBot
A recent surge in Saudi crude exports via the Red Sea appears to have created a logistical nightmare for Riyadh, as Yemen’s Ansarallah has now imposed a maritime embargo on Saudi shipping in the strategic Bab al-Mandab Strait.
Industry insiders report that over the past few weeks, Saudi Arabia has successfully sidestepped the conflict-plagued Strait of Hormuz by significantly increasing exports through the port of Yanbu on the Red Sea. Loadings reached approximately 4.7 million barrels per day as of July 13, according to data from Signal Ocean, cited by Reuters. This substantial increase comes after pre-war estimates indicated that around 760,000 barrels per day were being exported via Yanbu.
However, the new route presents a challenge of its own. Since the ships employed for these exports are, for the most part, Very Large Crude Carriers, which typically have a larger draught than other vessels, a significant portion of these ships cannot pass through the Suez Canal, the main shipping route connecting the Red Sea to the Mediterranean.
Hence, they are relegated to the Bab al-Mandab, the narrow, often-congested waterway dividing Yemen and Djibouti. Yemen’s Ansarallah, in response, has now launched a maritime embargo targeting Saudi vessels traversing this strait, claiming that it is retaliating against Saudi Arabia’s long-standing blockade on Yemen.
The Ansarallah-led Houthi movement, in its most recent declaration, effectively declared it will be enforcing a blockade-for-blockade strategy, where, in essence, it is applying the same tactics employed against Yemen by Saudi Arabia. While the Saudi Arabian government has thus far been vocal in condemning the move, the implications of this new development pose a challenge for the country’s crude export strategy.
It is clear that Riyadh’s decision to reroute its oil shipments through Yanbu has created a new logistical headache, and the Ansarallah’s announcement now presents a significant risk to Saudi Arabia’s already strained maritime routes. This latest development is expected to be closely watched as international players closely monitor the evolving Middle Eastern dynamics and the implications for the global oil market.
Saudi officials have remained tight-lipped about the development, but the kingdom’s crude export strategy has been severely impacted, given the significant volumes currently utilizing the newly established Red Sea route. In the coming days, it will become increasingly crucial for Riyadh to re-evaluate its logistics and ensure a reliable path for its crude exports.