Saudis cut key oil price again as Hormuz talks progress

Processing facilities at the Khurais Processing Department in the Khurais oil field in Khurais, Saudi Arabia. (Maya Sidiqqui/Bloomberg)

Saudi Arabia cut its main crude oil price as some Persian Gulf producers continue to send barrels through the Strait of Hormuz, ahead of a highly anticipated deal to further open the waterway.

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State producer Saudi Aramco will reduce its Arab Light oil price for delivery to customers in Asia next month by 50 cents a barrel to $2 a barrel less than the regional benchmark, according to a price list from the company. It’s the fifth lowest price the kingdom has set since 2000. 

The monthly Saudi crude price has long been a benchmark for regional producers, setting the tone for the cost of oil delivered from the Persian Gulf to global refiners. With the U.S.-Iran war cutting the flow of barrels from the region, it’s been much harder for buyers and sellers to price that oil, particularly given soaring shipping costs as only a limited pool of vessel owners are willing to enter the Persian Gulf while missiles fly overhead.

Global benchmark Brent crude has slumped this week and is trading near $80 a barrel, a 20% drop in just the last two weeks, on expectations that flows through Hormuz may soon increase. Iran said an agreement with Oman on a proposed route for shipping through the critical waterway was in the final stages, a potential step toward reopening the channel for energy supplies. 

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While the outcome of talks is uncertain, some other regional producers, particularly the United Arab Emirates, have managed to ferry barrels out even during the recent period of regional attacks. Saudi flows through Hormuz, however, have remained muted as the kingdom has been relying on the port of Yanbu in the country’s west for its exports during the war.

Threats against Red Sea shipping by Iran-backed Houthi militants have imperiled that alternative route over the last few weeks. As a result, Aramco had been in discussions with its customers in Asia to take some of its deliveries from the Egyptian port of Sidi Kerir.

So far, Aramco has sustained crude exports at about 5 million barrels a day, CEO Amin Nasser said on an earnings conference call on Aug. 4. That’s about 70% of the company’s normal level of shipments. 

Heavy prices

The final price refiners pay for Saudi oil may be different than the official list released by the state producer, with additional pipeline and logistics costs added if customers pick up crude from Yanbu on the Red Sea or from Sidi Kerir on the Mediterranean coast.

Aramco increased prices for its Medium and Heavy crudes for sale to Asia next month, but the prices for those barrels are currently largely theoretical as they are usually shipped from the Persian Gulf. It cut prices for all of its crude grades to the U.S., Northwest Europe and the Mediterranean region. 

Asian refiners, Saudi Arabia’s main customers, had previously asked the kingdom for discounts on its selling prices in order to offset some of the added costs for taking the longer route around Africa.

Opening Hormuz to the free flow of oil tankers would allow Aramco to ramp up shipments from its main export terminal at Ras Tanura on the Gulf. Previous efforts to boost flows have been hampered by renewed fighting and vessel attacks.

Written by Yongchang Chin, Serene Cheong, Rong Wei Neo and Anthony Di Paola