
News & Macrohigh confidence
Saudi Oil Crisis Is About to Hit Europe
oilprice.com · September 16, 2026 · Week 2026-38
Summary
Attacks attributed to the Houthis have damaged and shut down Saudi Arabia's critical East-West Pipeline (Petroline), which serves as the primary alternative to the Strait of Hormuz. The outage threatens 3.5-4 million bpd of Saudi crude exports, primarily impacting European supply, and raises the risk of wider regional conflict involving Iraq and Iran-aligned militias.
Strategic Implication
The shutdown of the Petroline removes the key bypass for the Strait of Hormuz, exposing a significant volume of Saudi exports to chokepoint risk and escalating regional conflict.