Saudi Arabia's crude exports averaged 5.3mn b/d in March and refined products exports stood at around 800,000 b/d, sources told Argus, after Riyadh successfully rerouted flows to its west coast following the closure of the strait of Hormuz.
Crude exports averaged 3.3mn b/d from the Red Sea port of Yanbu and 1.1mn b/d from the kingdom's main Ras Tanura hub, according to trade analytics firm Kpler, bringing the total to 4.4mn b/d.
But Saudi Arabia also tapped into its "international storage in Japan, South Korea and the Netherlands for a few days, until rerouted cargoes began arriving at Yanbu," the sources said.
Despite the shift, the March figure is well off from pre-war flows in February, when total Saudi crude exports were 7.2mn b/d and refined product exports 1.6mn b/d.
The US-Israel war with Iran, which began on 28 February, has effectively halted flows through Hormuz after Tehran began threatening and targeting tankers in and around the strait. This has forced Saudi Arabia and other regional producers to shut in significant volumes of oil and gas output.
The kingdom's 7mn b/d East-West pipeline has emerged as a critical strategic asset for both Saudi Arabia and global energy markets. Its ability to rapidly deploy spare infrastructure and reroute exports has reinforced its position as the world's primary supplier of last resort.
State-controlled Saudi Aramco began offering Asia-Pacific buyers the option of loading crude from Yanbu during the first week of the war, accelerating the shift towards Red Sea export routes.
The East-West pipeline — now Saudi Arabia's primary export outlet — reached full capacity around 25 March, enabling crude exports via Yanbu to climb to around 5mn b/d. The pipeline also supplies roughly 2mn b/d to domestic Red Sea facilities, including 1.5mn–1.6mn b/d to refineries near Yanbu and 400,000–500,000 b/d to the Jizan refinery, as well as power and desalination plants along the coast.
Despite the pipeline operating at full capacity, flows remain insufficient to fully offset the loss of Hormuz transit, which previously handled around 15mn b/d of crude.
Markets are closely watching the kingdom's ability to sustain flows, particularly after Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi militants launched missiles at Israel on 28 March — marking their first direct involvement since the conflict began. The move raises the risk of further escalation in the Red Sea and around the Bab el-Mandeb, a critical chokepoint for global oil flows.
The 1,200km pipeline, linking Saudi Arabia's eastern oil fields to the Red Sea, was developed during the 1980s Iran-Iraq "Tanker War" as part of contingency planning for a potential Hormuz closure.
Saudi Arabia has also cut production by around 2.5mn b/d, shutting in several offshore fields — including Safaniya, Marjan, Zuluf and Abu Safa — in response to Iranian missile and drone threats targeting Gulf energy infrastructure.
