Saudi Arabia has disclosed significant damage to several Saudi Aramco facilities after Iranian attacks that took place shortly after the 7 April ceasefire announcement between the US and Iran. The damage affects the East-West pipeline, the Manifa oil field, refining assets and LPG export infrastructure, raising fresh concerns over Saudi oil supply, Middle East energy security and the reliability of alternative export routes while the Strait of Hormuz remains heavily restricted.
East-West Pipeline and Manifa Output Hit
Saudi Arabia’s oil ministry said an attack on a pumping station along Aramco’s East-West pipeline cut the line’s capacity by 700,000 barrels per day. A separate attack reduced production capacity at the Manifa oil field by 300,000 b/d.
The East-West pipeline has become Saudi Arabia’s main export artery after Iran disrupted navigation through the Strait of Hormuz. The line had reportedly been running at its full 7mn b/d capacity in late March, making any loss of throughput especially important for crude export flows and regional oil logistics.
The ministry also said an earlier attack on the Khurais field in March reduced production capacity there by another 300,000 b/d.
Refineries and LPG Export Facilities Also Affected
Saudi authorities said Iranian attacks also targeted Aramco’s Satorp, Ras Tanura, Samref and Riyadh refineries. In addition, damage at the Juaymah facility has curbed exports of LPG and natural gas liquids, adding pressure beyond the crude market and into petrochemical and gas liquids supply chains.
The attacks also caused casualties. According to the ministry, one Aramco security staff member was killed and seven facility workers were injured.
The Saudi oil ministry did not provide exact timings for each strike, but the reported damage suggests that most of the attacks happened within 48 hours of the ceasefire announcement, underscoring how fragile the truce remains.
Strait of Hormuz Still Constrained
The latest Saudi disclosure comes as Gulf energy markets continue to face severe shipping disruption. Although Tehran said the Strait of Hormuz would reopen once the ceasefire took effect, vessel traffic remains highly constrained.
That leaves Saudi Arabia more dependent on overland and Red Sea-linked export infrastructure such as the East-West pipeline. Any disruption to that system now carries much greater market significance because it directly limits Saudi Arabia’s ability to reroute crude away from the Gulf.
The continued restrictions also keep pressure on freight, insurance, refinery planning and regional supply chains, even if direct US-Iran hostilities have paused.
SuperMetalPrice Commentary
This is a major energy security development for the wider commodities market. Even though the immediate story is about oil, disruption to Saudi refining, LPG and NGL exports can quickly feed into freight costs, petrochemical input pricing and broader industrial supply chain risk across the Middle East.
The key point to watch now is not only repair timelines at Aramco facilities, but whether the Strait of Hormuz becomes functionally usable again. If it does not, damage to alternative export routes becomes far more important for global energy and industrial markets.
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