Saudi Aramco to Suspend Crude Supplies to Some European Refiners in October

NEW YORK – Saudi Aramco told at least two oil refining customers in Europe that they will be allocated no crude in October under long-term agreements after the kingdom’s key pipeline to the Red Sea was attacked, people informed of the decision said.

European customers normally receive Saudi Arabian crude on so-called term contracts, ensuring a steady flow of supply every month. Those deliveries will not take place in October, the people said, asking not to be identified because the information is not public. The decision applies to all European buyers, they said.

Saudi Aramco did not immediately respond to a request for comment made outside normal working hours.

The absence of Saudi flows in October will heighten the need for European buyers to secure replacements. Already, Poland’s Orlen SA has been hunting for shipments, helping propel the prices of regional oil grades higher. Dated Brent, which is the benchmark for real-world barrels in Europe, topped US$130 this week at one point.

Saudi Arabia was forced to shut its East-West pipeline last week after it was attacked by drones. Aramco is working to partially restart within days and ramp up to full capacity within six weeks, a person familiar with the matter said on Sept 16.

The shutdown has forced Aramco to make the rare move to offer customers in Asia cargoes on a so-called spot basis – agreements for immediate delivery. Once the pipeline restarts, traders will focus on whether Aramco offers refiners in Europe similar terms.

Those supplies to Asia are going through the Persian Gulf, which means Aramco has once again pivoted towards the embattled Strait of Hormuz. The company has sold tens of millions of barrels to customers for collection just outside the waterway this week, a route it had largely shunned during the conflict in the Middle East as regular attacks of ships made the journey risky.

The increased flows towards the Persian Gulf, however, brings little relief to Europe’s refiners. In order to get to buyers in the continent, those shipments would either have to sail through the Red Sea, where Yemen’s Houthi militants have been attacking Saudi ships, or sail almost five weeks around Africa.

European refineries typically lift Saudi crude from Egypt’s Mediterranean port of Sidi Kerir, which is connected to the Red Sea via a pipeline.

European countries in the OECD imported 577,000 barrels a day of crude from Saudi Arabia in June, according to the International Energy Agency. BLOOMBERG