Consultancy firm Rystad Energy has indicated that threats from the Houthi group to block Saudi Arabia's maritime transit routes in the Red Sea are putting approximately 2.5 million barrels per day of oil shipments at risk.
The firm's head of geopolitics analysis, Jorge Leon, stated in a report released on Tuesday that this volume of crude is currently being transported southward via the strategic Bab el-Mandeb Strait.
Leon noted that Saudi Arabia has increased crude export volumes from its Red Sea port of Yanbu to around 4 million barrels per day, a move aimed at bypassing the Strait of Hormuz.
Leon warned that any disruption to these shipments would threaten Saudi crude exports and impact "one of the few alternative channels currently capable of compensating for a significant drop in shipping volumes through the Strait of Hormuz. If a ceasefire is not achieved, the Strait of Hormuz remains largely closed, and Houthi threats to Red Sea shipping escalate further, the risk of a substantial rebound in oil prices will rise significantly."
Rystad Energy added that shipping activity through the Strait of Hormuz remains "almost at a standstill," while Saudi Arabia's crude export route via the Red Sea is "now directly in the line of fire."
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