Saudi Arabia Insists Energy Supply Remains Resilient

Despite recent attacks on Saudi Arabia's energy and transport infrastructure, the Kingdom's energy resilience remains strong, according to Saudi Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman. Speaking at the WPC Energy Congress in Riyadh on Monday, the minister emphasized that energy resilience is not solely determined by spare capacity or infrastructure, but also by the ability to maintain, repair, reroute, substitute, and recover under pressure.

Prior to the minister's address, he declared in his opening remarks that Saudi Arabia has proven its capacity to ensure reliable energy supplies while investing and preparing for various challenges, according to the Saudi Press Agency. Prince Abdulaziz described Riyadh as the "capital of energy security" and reiterated the Kingdom's commitment to fulfilling its obligations and maintaining reliable energy supplies in any situation.

The minister's comments come following drone attacks on the East-West onshore pipeline, which forced it to shut down for two weeks before it was restored. Additionally, Saudi Arabia's export route through the Red Sea port of Yanbu has also recovered. Prince Abdulaziz's remarks also reference recent missile strikes on Riyadh's international airport by Iran-aligned Houthis, which killed 14 people over the weekend, leading to the withdrawal of top executives from major international oil and gas companies from the WPC Energy Congress.

The CEOs of ExxonMobil, Shell, BP, and TotalEnergies were set to attend but had to modify their plans due to the ongoing travel disruptions. Despite these setbacks, BP expressed their appreciation for their long-standing partnerships in the region in a statement to the Financial Times.