Saudi Arabia wants to move 10 million barrels a day of crude by pipeline to destinations outside the Persian Gulf within two to three years, Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman said on Monday.

Speaking at the WPC Energy Congress in Riyadh, the minister laid out a two-track plan: upgrading pumping stations on the East-West pipeline and temporarily converting a gas pipeline to carry crude. Both measures are designed to route Saudi exports around the Strait of Hormuz as the kingdom fends off waves of Houthi attacks on its energy and aviation infrastructure.

"We may end up with 10 million barrels within the next two to three years," Prince Abdulaziz told the congress. "We are improving the pump stations of the East-West pipeline."

How much capacity is moving now?

The East-West pipeline — the kingdom's key conduit for exports since the start of the US-Iran war — was carrying 5.8 million barrels a day as of October 6, according to the minister, who disclosed the figure last week. That flow resumed after operations were halted following a September drone attack on the line.

The pipeline's wartime role has been twofold: it carries crude exports from the Red Sea port of Yanbu and feeds refineries on Saudi Arabia's west coast. Its route from the eastern oil-producing region to the Red Sea provides a direct alternative to tanker transits through Hormuz.

Prince Abdulaziz said the line has already paid for itself during the crisis. Its use has more than recovered its cost, he told the audience in Riyadh.

What does the gas pipeline conversion involve?

The repurposed gas pipeline could carry about 1.2 million barrels a day of crude within seven to eight weeks, the minister said. Further investment could raise that volume to 3 million barrels a day.

The arrangement is temporary by design. Prince Abdulaziz said he had told Saudi Aramco Chief Executive Officer Amin Nasser that the pipeline could transport crude until May, after which it must be cleaned and returned to service for domestic gas supplies during the summer.

The kingdom is working with Aramco on dual-use capability for the asset, installing pumping stations and compressors so the line can switch between oil and gas depending on circumstances.

What does this mean for tanker markets?

For shipowners and charterers, the implications cut in two directions. Shifting up to 10 million barrels a day of Saudi crude away from Hormuz-bound tankers toward Red Sea loadings at Yanbu reshapes trade flows across the region — a consequence that matters for VLCC demand on Gulf routes and for charterers recalculating voyage economics around the war.

At the same time, Houthi attacks on energy infrastructure have kept risk premiums elevated on Red Sea transits themselves, complicating the security calculus that drives the pipeline push.

The near-term variable is the May deadline on the converted gas line. Once Saudi Arabia reclaims it for summer gas supply, the kingdom loses up to 1.2 million barrels a day of pipeline capacity unless dual-use investment arrives fast enough to keep volumes moving around Hormuz.