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Saudi oil loading volumes drop 40 percent at Red Sea port amid Yemeni blockade

The Cradle | July 27, 2026

Saudi crude oil loading volumes at the Red Sea port of Yanbu have plummeted by 40 percent in the past several days, with the kingdom using an Egyptian pipeline to avoid the recently imposed Yemeni blockade, according to data released by analytics platform Vortexa on 26 July.

The fall in loading volumes is a result of the Ansarallah-backed Yemeni Armed Forces’ (YAF) retaliatory operations and maritime blockade against Riyadh, which has been besieging and attacking the Arab world’s poorest nation for nearly 12 years.

The blockade is causing very significant losses, according to maritime data intelligence firm Windward.

“Saudi Arabia has established a working alternative export route via the SUMED pipeline and Cape of Good Hope,” Windward wrote in a report on Sunday, citing Vortexa’s data.

According to the report, this is “adding approximately $9 per barrel to transport cost.”

“Saudi crude has not stopped moving. It has bifurcated. Yanbu port has transitioned to entirely AIS-dark tanker operations at berth as vessels shield against [Ansarallah’s] hit list. Saudi Arabia established a working alternative export route via the SUMED pipeline and Cape of Good Hope, adding cost and voyage time but demonstrating the market’s adaptability,” the report added.

Saudi Arabia had established an alternate route via Yanbu at the start of the US-Israeli war, following Iran’s initial blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, according to reports at the time.

The Windward report coincided with the release of SoarAtlas satellite imagery showing major fires still burning at Saudi Aramco’s Jazan Oil Refinery due to YAF strikes.

Thick black smoke has continued to rise from a large oil storage tank following Ansarallah’s strikes on the $12 billion complex on Saturday, the images reveal.

The YAF had announced its latest operations against Saudi Arabia on 25 July. This was a response to renewed Saudi bombardment targeting Yemen’s port city of Hodeidah.

“In response to this blatant criminal aggression, the YAF carried out two specialized military operations. The first operation targeted sensitive facilities belonging to Saudi Aramco in Jazan, using dozens of ballistic missiles and drones,” the Ansarallah-led Yemeni army said.

“The second operation targeted sensitive Saudi Aramco facilities in Yanbu, using a number of ballistic missiles, cruise missiles, and drones,” it added.

The YAF stressed that the operations were “accurate” and “direct.” Reports from over the weekend said blasts were heard from Yanbu city as well.

Earlier on Saturday, Saudi airstrikes targeted fuel tanks and communication facilities in the western Yemeni city of Hodeidah.

Yemeni President Mahdi al-Mashat said on 27 July, “To the Saudi enemy, we say that those who offer you false hopes will not benefit you. Anything short of ending the aggression and lifting the blockade is mere illusion.”

The YAF had also struck two Saudi oil tankers several days ago as part of the new Yemeni blockade of Saudi shipping.

The Yemeni blockade was announced by Sanaa’s forces on 20 July. “Blockade for blockade,” the YAF said.

Earlier in July, Saudi Arabia carried out its first airstrike on Sanaa International Airport in years, prompting a serious Yemeni retaliation.

In response, the YAF targeted Saudi Arabia’s Abha Airport with missiles and drones. These were also the first direct Yemeni strikes against Saudi territory since 2021.

Saudi Arabia waged war against Yemen in 2015 at the head of an Arab coalition, after Ansarallah seized the capital and ousted the Saudi-backed president from Sanaa. The UAE was a major part of this war, which was also supported logistically by the UK, US, and Israel.

A 2023 Saudi–Yemeni peace process nearly resulted in an agreement between the two sides. The peace talks stalled, yet prevented a major escalation from erupting.

The kingdom for years continued its illegal and deadly blockade of Yemeni ports and airports. Sanaa International Airport in particular has been under Saudi blockade for more than a decade, with severe restrictions imposed on commercial flights.

Sick and wounded Yemenis have long faced restrictions when trying to leave the country for urgent treatment.

The Saudi-led war on Yemen that began over a decade ago resulted in an unprecedented famine and the deaths of hundreds of thousands.

Prior to Riyadh’s new escalation, Yemeni forces had already begun mobilizing to expel the Saudi-led coalition from the country.

July 27, 2026 - Posted by | Wars for Israel | ,

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