|
|
|
2 Saudi oil pumping stations 'attacked by drones'
|
|
|
|
Top Stories |
|
|
|
|
IANS | 14 May, 2019
Saudi Arabia said on Tuesday that its two oil pumping stations for the
East-West pipeline had been hit by explosive-laden drones, calling the
incident "an act of terrorism" that targeted global oil supplies.
The
attack took place at two stations near Afif and Dawadimi on the
pipeline that carries petroleum from oilfields in the country's east to
the Red Sea port of Yanbu, Saudi Arabia's Energy Minister Khalid Al
Falih was cited as saying by the official SPA news agency.
Oil
prices climbed on after Saudi Arabia reported the incident. US oil
prices rose 1.4 per cent even though Saudi's state-owned oil company
Aramco told CNN that the attack caused "no damage to oil production, no
oil spills or injuries". Brent crude, the global benchmark, jumped 1.6
per cent.
Al-Falih said the assault caused a fire to break out at
pumping station number 8 but that the flames were brought under control
and the damage was "limited". He added that Saudi oil production was
not interrupted.
Aramco also said in a statment that "oil and gas supplies to our clients have not been affected by terrorist attacks".
The
apparent drone strike came a day after the kingdom said that two of its
oil tankers were sabotaged off the coast of the United Arab Emirates.
Blaming
the Tuesday incident on Yemeni Houthi rebels, the Saudi Minister said
that "they used explosive-laden airborne drones to attack Saudi Arabian
pumping stations on an east-west oil pipeline which belongs to Aramco".
"Recent
attacks in the Gulf and Saudi Arabia are aimed at the world, not just
the kingdom. This attack proves yet again the importance that all sides
stand against such destructive terror attacks, including the Iran-backed
Houthis militants," he added.
Houthi rebels, an insurgent group
in Yemen, is currently locked into a brutal civil war with the Saudi and
internationally-backed government.
Tensions are escalating in
the Gulf region as last week the US announced the deployment of the USS
Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier to the Middle East due to threats from
Iran and its proxies.
The UAE's Ministry of Foreign Affairs and
International Cooperation denounced the "cowardly act of terrorism and
sabotage" on Saudi oil pumping stations and said it was aimed at
undermining the safety of the world's global energy supplies and
economy.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Customs Exchange Rates |
Currency |
Import |
Export |
US Dollar
|
66.20
|
64.50 |
UK Pound
|
87.50
|
84.65 |
Euro
|
78.25
|
75.65 |
Japanese
Yen |
58.85 |
56.85 |
As on 13 Aug, 2022 |
|
|
Daily Poll |
|
|
PM Modi's recent US visit to redefine India-US bilateral relations |
|
|
|
|
|
Commented Stories |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|