CNN: Saudi oil pipeline system may have come under attack

US authorities believe a key oil pipeline system in Saudi Arabia may have been targeted in an attack that sparked fires at the site, CNN reported on September 11, citing White House officials.

According to US officials, the attack took place on Thursday, September 11. Satellite imagery showed damage to pumping stations near the pipeline, although it remains unclear whether the pipeline itself was damaged.

One US official said the attack was carried out using drones launched from Iraqi territory. The perpetrators have not been identified, and it is not yet known how long repairs to the system could take.

Earlier, Clash Report said satellite imagery showed a powerful smoke plume stretching for about 100 kilometres, along with persistent thermal anomalies along the pipeline southeast of Medina.

According to data attributed to NASA’s fire-monitoring systems, thermal signals with fire radiative power of more than 70 megawatts were detected at several points along the pipeline corridor and persisted for several hours. Clash Report said some analysts believed between six and eight sections of the pipeline may have been affected, raising the possibility of a loss of pressure or a rupture.

The East-West Pipeline is strategically important to Saudi Arabia because it provides an alternative route for exporting crude without relying on the Strait of Hormuz. The system has a capacity of about 7 million barrels per day, with roughly 5 million barrels of export crude transported each day to Yanbu on the Red Sea coast.

A confirmed attack would therefore threaten a critical alternative to Saudi Arabia’s Gulf export routes at a time when shipping through the Strait of Hormuz is already severely disrupted.

By Tamilla Hasanova