Saudi oil tankers cluster off Egyptian Red Sea coast amid increased European demand

Ten oil tankers, eight of them from Saudi Arabia, are clustered off the Egyptian port of Ain Sukhna on the Red Sea, with two more tankers heading to the same location, according to energy market intelligence firm Vortexa.

The cluster, which currently holds 20 million barrels of oil, is the biggest to have formed since the second quarter of 2020, when tankers holding 30 million barrels of Saudi oil were clustered.

Of the ten ships, the first arrived on 11 May, meaning it has been anchored for 39 days. The latest ship arrived on 11 June.

According to Jay Maroo, Vortexa head of market intelligence and analysis for the Middle East and North Africa, the build-up of tankers could be due to stronger European demand for Saudi crude oil.

The port of Ain Sukhna hosts the SUMED pipeline which runs crude oil to a terminal in Sidi Kerir on Egypt’s Mediterranean coast.

Maroo said Vortexa data suggested that infrastructure difficulties, such as problems relating to the discharging of cargo, were unlikely to be the source of the problem.

The cluster comes as Saudi Arabia pledged to make production cuts of one million barrels of oil in a bid to lift market prices to $80 per barrel and cover government spending.