Oil prices climbed toward $107 a barrel on September 15 as traders assessed continuing risks to Middle East energy supplies following the shutdown of Saudi Arabia's East-West oil pipeline and renewed attacks by Yemen's Houthi movement.
Brent crude futures were trading at about $106.93 a barrel in early trading, while US West Texas Intermediate crude was around $102.65 a barrel. The move came as markets continued to price the risk of disruption to oil infrastructure and shipping routes across the region.
Market and causality note: These prices are market levels reported during the September 15 trading session. The attacks and infrastructure disruptions discussed below were important supply-risk factors at the time, but they should not be treated as proof that any single event caused the entire movement in crude prices.
Why oil was approaching $107
The immediate concern was not one event alone. Markets were responding to several overlapping risks involving Saudi oil infrastructure, the Strait of Hormuz and renewed Houthi attacks.
Saudi Arabia had temporarily shut its strategically important East-West pipeline after drones struck infrastructure along the route. Saudi authorities said the drones had been launched from Iraq and that the attack caused injuries and material damage.
Reuters reported on September 12 that the pipeline had been closed as a precaution following the attack. At that stage, no group had publicly claimed responsibility for the pipeline strike.
The distinction is important. The origin of the drones and responsibility for the attack are separate questions, so the incident should not be attributed to a specific Iraqi militia without evidence establishing responsibility.
Why the East-West pipeline matters
Saudi Arabia's East-West pipeline runs roughly 1,200 kilometres across the kingdom, connecting oil-producing areas near the Gulf with the Red Sea port of Yanbu.
Its strategic importance increased during disruption around the Strait of Hormuz because it provides Saudi Arabia with an alternative route for moving crude toward the Red Sea without sending those barrels through the strait.
The pipeline shutdown therefore removed part of an important bypass route at a time when regional oil logistics were already under pressure.
Reporting at the time indicated that the pipeline had been moving several million barrels per day. That made its temporary closure relevant to global supply expectations even though a shutdown did not mean the same volume was permanently removed from world oil supply.
Fresh Houthi attacks added to market concern
Oil-market anxiety was also reinforced by new attacks claimed by Yemen's Houthi movement.
On September 14, the Houthis said they had launched missiles and drones at the Khamis Mushait military airbase in southern Saudi Arabia. The group said it targeted aircraft hangars, radar systems, runways and ammunition depots.
Contemporary market reporting on September 15 linked the rise in crude prices to continuing supply concerns following attacks on Saudi energy infrastructure and renewed regional hostilities.
The extent of damage claimed in individual military attacks was not independently established in the market reports used for this article.
The pipeline was later restarted
The September 15 price move should now be read as a snapshot of conditions at that point in the crisis rather than as a description of the pipeline's current operating status.
Saudi Arabia subsequently restarted the East-West pipeline on September 22. Reuters reported on September 29 that crude and refined-product loadings at Yanbu had resumed following the restart.
Flows were recovering, although Reuters reported that throughput had not immediately returned to its previous level.
This later development changes the supply picture from the one traders were assessing on September 15. It does not change the fact that the shutdown was an important market risk when Brent approached $107, but it means the pipeline should no longer be described as indefinitely closed.
Why the disruption mattered beyond Saudi Arabia
The East-West pipeline is particularly important during disruption in the Gulf because it gives Saudi Arabia another route to the Red Sea.
When both maritime routes and alternative pipeline infrastructure face security risks, traders can price in the possibility of tighter supply, higher transport costs and more complicated export logistics.
Those concerns can affect crude benchmarks even before the full physical loss of supply is known. Oil prices therefore reflect expectations about future availability as well as barrels that have already been removed from the market.
What it meant for Pakistan
Pakistan is a major importer of petroleum products, so sustained increases in international oil prices can increase pressure on the country's import bill and domestic fuel-pricing calculations.
However, an international crude benchmark reaching a particular level does not translate automatically or immediately into an identical change at Pakistani fuel pumps. Domestic prices can also depend on exchange rates, taxes, levies, freight, product prices and the government's pricing decisions.
For Pakistani consumers, the more important question is therefore whether elevated international prices persist long enough to affect the inputs used in subsequent domestic pricing reviews.
What the September 15 price tells us
Brent's move toward $107 reflected a period when traders were confronting several simultaneous risks: a temporarily disabled Saudi bypass pipeline, disruption around the Strait of Hormuz and continuing regional attacks.
The subsequent restart of the East-West pipeline demonstrates why fast-moving energy stories need to distinguish between the conditions that drove a particular trading session and what happened afterward.
Update, October 2, 2026: This article has been updated with direct source links and later developments. It now records that Saudi Arabia's East-West pipeline resumed operations on September 22, distinguishes the Iraqi origin of the drones from responsibility for the attack, and treats the September 15 oil price as a dated market snapshot rather than the current oil-market position.
