What does the attack on Saudi Arabia’s Oil facilities mean for the world & Alaska?

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Brent crude oil spikes the most in history after Saudi attacks, last up 14%
Yun Li, CNBC, September 16, 2019

Oil prices soared after a coordinated attack hit the heart of Saudi Arabia’s oil industry on Saturday, forcing the kingdom to cut its oil output in half. Brent crude futures, the international benchmark, rose as much as 19.5% to $71.95 per barrel at the open, the biggest intraday jump on record. By early afternoon, the contract was at $68.89, up $8.67 or 14.38%.  U.S. West Texas Intermediate futures climbed as much as 15.5% to $63.34. The contract was later at $62.79, up $7.95 or 14.49%.  An oil processing facility at Abqaiq and the nearby Khurais oil field was attacked on Saturday, knocking out 5.7 million barrels of daily crude production or 50% of the kingdom’s oil output. Saudi Aramco, the national oil company, reportedly aims to restore about a third of its crude output, or 2 million barrels by Monday. However, Bloomberg News reported it could take weeks before Aramco restores the majority of its output at Abqaiq.

 

Attack on Saudi Arabia’s Oil facilities
Wood Mackenzie, September 16, 2019

Following reports on drone attacks on Saudi Arabia’s oil facilities yesterday, Wood Mackenzie VP for refining, chemicals and oil markets, Alan Gelder said:

“This attack has material implications for the oil market, as a loss of 5 million barrels per day of supplies from Saudi Arabia cannot be met for long by existing inventories and the limited spare capacity of the other OPEC+ group members.  A geopolitical risk premium will return to the oil price.”

 

Related:

Oil Supplies Adequate Despite Attacks on Saudi:  IEA

Shale Stocks Surge as Crude Oil Spikes After Saudi Attack

 

Tuesday, September 17, 2019: 

The Senate and Energy and Natural Resources Committee holds a hearing on examining “the sourcing and use of minerals needed for clean energy technologies.”