Page 12 - MEOG Week 47

MEOG PROJECTS & COMPANIES MEOG

Aramco facilities attacked again

SAUDI ARABIA FOLLOWING last week’s foiled attack on Saudi economy,” the ministry said.
Aramco’s Jazan oil terminal, Yemen’s Houthi While the Red Sea facilities are more than
militia claimed to have struck the company’s 1,000 km from the bulk of upstream operations
north Jeddah bulk plant further up the Red Sea which are located in the Eastern Province, the
coast on November 23. success of such an attack on Jeddah could have
According to Houthi spokesman Yahya Saree, significant human and operational implications,
the group hit the facility with a Quds 2 rocket as the city is Saudi Arabia’s second most popu-
fired from within Yemeni territory. Saree said: lous. While Aramco closed its Jeddah refinery in
“The strike was very accurate, and ambulances 2017, targeting facilities that far north illustrates
and fire engines rushed to the target.” the capabilities of the Houthis, and must give
Later that day, a spokesman from the Saudi Aramco cause for concern about vital midstream
Ministry of Energy said that “an explosion took and downstream facilities at Yanbu’, which is just
place as a result of a terrorist attack by a projec- 300 km further up the coast.
tile, causing a fire in a fuel tank at the petroleum Yanbu’ is a key export hub and is situated at
products distribution terminal, in the north of the western end of the East-West Pipeline which
Jeddah.” Aramco is currently overhauling to increase
He added that firefighting teams had extin- longer-term throughput capabilities from 5mn
guished the fire, and that no casualties had barrels per day to 7mn bpd.
occurred as a result of the attack. Aramco has not In September last year, attacks on Abqaiq
yet made any public statements about the attack. and Khurais facilities in Eastern Province saw
The MoE’s comments follow its announce- oil flows reduced by 5.7mn bpd and led to an
ment last week that it had thwarted an attack international investigation which suggested that
in Jazan by intercepting and destroying two the drones and rockets had “probably” been pro-
boats filled with explosives, though a fire broke vided by Iran.
out at the terminal’s floating hoses without any Apparently under constant threat from
casualties. the south and the north, Aramco has invested
“Such criminal acts directed against vital heavily in defence and is understood to have US
facilities do not target the kingdom alone, but Patriot missile systems sited near major facilities
they also target the security of oil exports, the as well as having contracts in place with several
stability of energy supplies to the world, the free- major US-based defence firms for protection
dom of international trade, and the entire global against drones and other projectiles.™

Saudi Arabian ports,
terminals, bulk plants,
refineries and chemicals
facilities.

Source: Aramco prospectus

P12 www. NEWSBASE .com Week 47 25•November•2020