Saudi Arabia has resumed crude loadings at Yanbu on the Red Sea coast following the partial restoration of the East-West Pipeline, the 5 million bpd conduit that carries Arabian crude from Eastern Province fields to Red Sea export terminals.

The restart restores at least part of the Kingdom's westward evacuation route for crude produced in the Ghawar and Khurais area, giving Aramco renewed flexibility to export through the Red Sea as well as the Gulf. IndexBox first reported the resumption of loadings at the Yanbu terminal.

The East-West Pipeline, also known as the Petroline, runs roughly 1,200 km from Abqaiq to Yanbu and serves as the main alternative to tanker transits through the Strait of Hormuz. Its partial return to service re-establishes that strategic bypass option, though the extent of throughput restored — and how quickly the line climbs back toward nameplate capacity — remains the open question for crude traders watching Baltic and Asian freight assessments.

Yanbu is the western export anchor for Saudi crude grades including Arab Light, and its terminals feed the Suez-Mediterranean route toward European refineries. Loadings there had been suspended while the pipeline was out of service, forcing export flows back through Gulf Coast terminals at Ras Tanura and Ju'aymah.

The company has not disclosed the current pumping rate on the restored segment, nor a timetable for returning the line to full capacity. Watch items going forward: the ramp-up schedule toward the pipeline's 5 million bpd design capacity, any change in official selling differentials for Red Sea-loaded grades, and Aramco's next monthly allocation statement for term lifters.