Saudi Arabia Reportedly Cuts Production by 2 Million Barrels/Day in Response to Strait of Hormuz Blockade

Odaily News According to Reuters, two sources stated that Saudi Arabia, the world's largest oil exporter, has cut its oil production by approximately 2 million barrels per day, reducing it to around 8 million barrels per day. This follows the country's shutdown of partial production at two major offshore oil fields. The sources indicated that although Saudi Arabia is diverting more crude oil to the Yanbu port on the Red Sea coast to bypass the Strait of Hormuz, production has fallen to about 8 million barrels per day after the shutdowns at the Safaniya and Zuluf offshore fields. Another source said Saudi production has dropped below 8 million barrels per day. These two offshore fields primarily produce heavy and medium-heavy crude oil, with a combined output exceeding 2 million barrels per day, while the pipeline to Yanbu mainly transports light crude oil. If production falls to 8 million barrels per day, it would represent a significant decline compared to February. In February, Saudi Arabia supplied 10.111 million barrels per day to the market, with production at 10.882 million barrels per day. Sources at the time said the production increase in February was part of a contingency plan formulated in response to potential U.S. strikes on Iran and disruptions to Middle Eastern supply.