Saudi Aramco's Ras Tanura target of attempted drone attack, defence ministry says

Aramco's key crude export terminal hit for second time in two days as Strait of Hormuz remains blocked

Saudi Aramco's Ras Tanura, which houses its largest ​domestic refinery and a key crude export terminal, was targeted by ‌an attempted drone attack on Wednesday, a Saudi defense ministry spokesperson said on X, two days after a drone attack on the complex shut the refinery.

The attack ​resulted in no damage, the spokesman said. The Saudi state news ​agency also cited an energy ministry source as saying that ⁠there was no disruption to supplies.

Three separate sources told Reuters that Ras ​Tanura had been struck, but did not provide details on any damage.

Saudi ​Arabia and other regional Gulf oil producers, such as the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait and Iraq, have been unable to move oil through the Strait of Hormuz since the ​U.S. and Israel launched attacks on Iran on Friday.

Hundreds of ships have ​anchored on either side of the Strait as a precaution, and Iran has said it ‌would ⁠fire on any vessel that attempted to transit the shipping choke point.

Ras Tanura sits on Saudi Arabia's eastern coast on the Gulf. Aramco is attempting to reroute some of its crude exports to the Red Sea ​to avoid the Strait, ​sources have ⁠said.

Read: Saudi Aramco closes Ras Tanura refinery after drone strike, source says

 

Aramco did not immediately respond to an emailed request for comment.

Saudi Arabia's heavily fortified energy facilities have been targeted ​previously, most notably in September 2019 when unprecedented drone ​and missile ⁠attacks on the Abqaiq and Khurais plants temporarily knocked out more than half of the kingdom's crude production and roiled global markets.

Ras Tanura was attacked ⁠by ​Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthis in 2021, in what Riyadh ​called a failed assault on global energy security.

The new strike comes in the wake of deepening regional tensions, with US-Israeli strikes and retaliatory Iranian strikes continuing to rock the Middle East.

Despite the deteriorating situation, Mohammad Mokhber, a senior aide to the late supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei told state TV on Wednesday that Iran has no intention of negotiating with the US and can continue the Middle East war for as long as needed.