Egypt’s Sumed pipeline network provides a key link for crude oil trade between the Middle East and Europe, enabling tankers to avoid the Suez Canal. As much as 1mn b/d is routinely delivered to Sumed’s Red Sea terminal of Ain Sukhna, from where it is piped to the Mediterranean port of Sidi Kerir to be loaded onto tankers for onwards delivery – to Europe and less frequently to the Americas.
A backlog of VLCC tankers holding more than 20mn barrels of crude oil built up outside Ain Sukhna over the summer as Europe switched out sanctioned Russian barrels in favor of Middle Eastern grades (MEES, 30 June). Europe has by and large succeeded in replacing Russian crude, but the new trade routes are far less efficient and have placed additional stresses and strains on infrastructure. (CONTINUED - 925 WORDS)
