June 26, 2026
Saudi Aramco resumed oil loading on Friday at its Ras Tanura terminal in the Gulf after a near four-month halt, shipping data from LSEG showed, in a sign that Middle Eastern producers are pushing forward with plans to boost exports despite a ship attack in the Strait of Hormuz.
Middle Eastern producers had been ramping up oil and gas output and exports in the lead-up to the interim deal between the United States and Iran to halt the war and reopen the strait where a fifth of the world's oil and liquefied natural gas supplies used to pass.
Two Very Large Crude Carriers controlled by Saudi's shipping arm Bahri were seen loading crude at Ras Tanura, the world's biggest oil port, while another waited nearby, the data showed. Each VLCC is capable of loading 2 million barrels of oil.
Saudi Aramco could not be immediately reached for comment outside office hours.
