The continued terrorist attacks on oil facilities in Saudi Arabia will negatively affect the global economies that are currently suffering from the repercussions of the coronavirus, and will also squander international efforts to enhance the stability of energy markets, experts told Asharq Al-Awsat.
They warned that oil prices would continue to rise in the coming period if the world did not respond to terrorist attempts, which might lead to adverse consequences on the international economy.
In September 2019, the Kingdom witnessed terrorist attacks against Aramco’s oil facilities at Abqaiq and Khurais in eastern Saudi Arabia. On Sunday, attacks targeted one of the oil reservoir yards in the port of Ras Tanura in the Eastern Province, and immediately caused oil prices to rise above USD 71 per barrel.
Former senior advisor to the Minister of Energy, Dr. Mohammad Al-Sabban told Asharq Al-Awsat that the global energy markets were affected as a result of the recent attack, while the impact on prices was immediately noticed.
One of the drones that targeted Ras Tanura came from the sea, and may have originated directly from Iran, he remarked, stressing that this terrorist behavior in the region must be deterred in order to ensure global energy security in various parts of the world.
“The shortage in supplies affects prices, and is reflected in global economies that are experiencing a slowdown as a result of the coronavirus pandemic,” Sabban warned.
Researcher and writer on energy and climate affairs, Iman Abdullah told Asharq Al-Awsat that the recent attack on Saudi oil facilities at Ras Tanura - one of the largest oil shipping ports in the world – have sparked talks about the consequences and repercussions on the world’s “security of energy supplies”.
Abdullah underlined the need to take strict international measures to preserve the safety of oil supplies through strategic waterways in the Arabian Gulf, stressing that the interruption and scarcity of supply would threaten the security of the global economy.
An official source at the Ministry of Energy said on Monday that one of the oil reservoirs in Ras Tanura Port was targeted on Sunday morning by a drone coming from the sea, noting that the attempted attack failed to cause human or material damage.
The source emphasized that the Kingdom considered such attacks “a flagrant violation of all international laws and norms” and called on the world and its organizations to stand against these actions targeting civilians and vital installations, which threaten the security and stability of global energy supplies.
