The Problem With Trying to Bypass Hormuz Using Pipelines

By Kurt Cobb - Sep 14, 2026, 9:00 AM CDT Saudi Arabia’s East-West Pipeline had become a critical alternative export route as tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz collapsed. Drone attacks damaged pumping infrastructure and forced Saudi Arabia to shut the pipeline while assessing and repairing the damage. The attack underscores that pipelines bypassing maritime chokepoints can themselves become vulnerable strategic targets during war. The East-West Pipeline in Saudi Arabia, which delivers oil to the shores of the Red Sea, has been an important workaround to the choking of tanker traffic by Iran in the Strait of Hormuz, the only exit for tankers from the Persian Gulf to the open sea. The Saudi government claims that 7 million barrels per day (mbpd) of crude oil can flow westward through the pipeline to the port of Yanbu, though the current exports are thought to be lower (perhaps 5 mbpd) than that given infrastructure restraints.But now that pipeline has been bombed and put out of service. The Saudis are saying that the pipeline has been closed "as a precautionary measure." But that statement seems to underplay what has happened. Satellite images show that the attacks damaged at least two pumping stations. Repairing or replacing these stations may be more involved than simply replacing a section of damaged pipeline since the pipeline sits mostly above ground. And, of course, once repaired, the pipeline could simply be attacked again. The 1200-kilometer length of the pipeline is not easily defended.The oil-starved importers of the world have been gushing about how much oil has been getting out of the Persian Gulf right under the noses of a threatening Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) who are standing watch with missiles and drones on the shores of the Strait of Hormuz. But even these surreptitious transits have carried volumes far below those transported before the war began, only 7 mbpd versus 20 mbpd. The East-West Pipeline became a crucial source of oil to the world after the Iranians closed the Strait of Hormuz.Now a missile and drone attack has put to rest the idea that pipelines are, in fact, a genuine solution to the current and any future closure of the Strait of Hormuz. Given how obvious it is that pipelines are easy to attack with drones and missiles, it has been puzzling to read all the talk about building new pipelines in and around the Persian Gulf region to lessen dependence on the Strait of Hormuz. Only a simpleton would believe that these pipelines would somehow escape attack during a conflict in the region.The pipeline "solution" demonstrates perfectly 1) how one-dimensional much of the media coverage of the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran has been and 2) how one-dimensional the strategic thinking on the part of the United States has been.All any observer needs to do is look up in the sky and discover that there are second and third dimensions, making it possible for aerial weapons to come from far away to destroy any pipeline. It is difficult not to ridicule those who failed to make this simple observation before committing their typing fingers or their mouths to such a nonsense solution to the Strait of Hormuz closure as pipelines.By Kurt Cobb via Resource InsightsMore Top Reads From Oilprice.comOil Prices Surge as Middle East Attacks Continue and Diplomacy StumblesSoaring Oil Prices Put Fed on Track for September Rate HikeMiddle East Oil Routes Under Pressure as Hormuz Traffic Tumbles Download The Free Oilprice App Today Back to homepage