Saudi Arabia foils drone strike on Ras Tanura oil hub amid regional tensions

2026-03-05 - 05:16

An attempted drone attack targeted Saudi Arabia’s vital oil hub at Ras Tanura on Wednesday, according to a spokesperson for the Saudi Ministry of Defense, just two days after a separate strike forced the shutdown of the facility’s refinery. The spokesperson said the attempted strike caused no damage to the complex, which is operated by Saudi Aramco. A source from the Saudi Ministry of Energy, citing the Saudi Press Agency, also confirmed that oil supplies were not disrupted following the incident. However, three separate sources told Reuters that Ras Tanura had been hit, though they did not provide details about possible damage to the site. The facility is one of Saudi Arabia’s most critical energy assets, housing the kingdom’s largest domestic refinery and a major crude export terminal on the Gulf coast. The attempted strike comes as regional tensions continue to disrupt energy flows across the Gulf. Oil shipments through the Strait of Hormuz have effectively halted since military strikes were launched against Iran by the United States and Israel last week. As a precaution, hundreds of tankers have anchored on both sides of the strategic waterway. Iranian authorities have warned they would target any vessel attempting to pass through the narrow shipping lane. Located on Saudi Arabia’s eastern coast along the Persian Gulf, Ras Tanura plays a pivotal role in global oil supply. Sources say Aramco is now trying to redirect some crude exports toward the Red Sea in order to bypass the Strait of Hormuz. Saudi Arabia’s oil infrastructure has been targeted before. In 2019 Abqaiq–Khurais attacks, coordinated drone and missile strikes temporarily knocked out more than half of the kingdom’s crude production, sending shockwaves through global energy markets. The Ras Tanura complex was also targeted in 2021 by Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthi movement, in what Riyadh described at the time as a failed attempt to threaten global energy security.