Saudis Give Oil Buyers Red Sea Option Due to Hormuz Crisis

Saudi Arabia is giving long-term oil customers the option of receiving their allocations for April via the Red Sea port of Yanbu as it prepares for lengthy disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz.

Buyers who choose Yanbu will only get a portion of their monthly supply due to constraints on how much crude the pipeline to the port can carry, said traders who have been informed by state-run Saudi Aramco. The other option is to receive oil from the Persian Gulf, but at the risk of not getting any if the strait remains closed, said the traders, who asked not to be named as they’re not allowed to speak to media.