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Saudi Aramco has shut its Ras Tanura crude oil refinery following an Iranian drone strike on 2 March, according to media reports, as Tehran launched retaliatory strikes across the Gulf region in response to earlier US-Israeli attacks on Iran.

The refinery and associated export terminal along the Gulf coast were shut as a precautionary measure and the situation is under control, Saudi Arabia’s Defence Ministry said. Authorities said the incoming aircraft were intercepted before reaching critical infrastructure.

A Saudi military spokesperson announced the interception via the state-run Saudi Press Agency. Online footage from the site showed thick black smoke rising.

Workers at the Ras Tanura facility, as well as at other Aramco facilities – mainly in the kingdom’s Eastern Province – were evacuated following the strike.

Saudi Arabia’s heavily fortified energy facilities have been targeted previously, most notably in September 2019 when unprecedented drone and missile attacks on the Abqaiq and Khurais plants temporarily knocked out more than half of the kingdom’s crude production and roiled global markets.

Separately, in an unrelated incident, Aramco halted liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) exports from its Juaymah plant from 23 February after structural damage to part of the delivery system, declaring force majeure on shipments.

Aramco activated its emergency response plan and suspended LPG export operations at the site. No leaks or injuries were reported, and local supplies were not affected.

The Juaymah terminal, located close to the Ras Tanura refinery, is one of the world’s largest exporters of LPG, as well as natural gas liquids (NGL), which include propane and butane.

Ras Tanura refinery complex

The Ras Tanura refinery is the oldest and one of the largest crude oil refineries in Saudi Arabia. The complex has a refining capacity of 550,000 barrels a day (b/d).

The facility also has a 305,000 b/d NGL processing facility, a 960,000 b/d crude stabilisation facility, combined steam and gas turbine electrical power generation plants with a capacity of 145/158MW (summer/winter), and a combined 150-pound and 600-pound steam capacity of 6,217 million pounds an hour (mlb/hr).

It has 75 crude oil and products storage tanks with a combined capacity of 5.8 million barrels.

The Ras Tanura refinery’s major facilities include a 325,000 b/d crude distillation unit, a 225,000 b/d gas condensate distillation unit, a 50,000 b/d hydrocracker and 107,000 b/d of catalytic reforming capacity.

The facility is Aramco’s only refinery to contain a Visbreaker processing unit, which has a 60,000 b/d capacity.

The Visbreaker reduces the quantity of residual oil produced in the distillation of crude oil and increases the yield of more valuable middle distillates, heating oil and diesel.

The refinery complex also produces 17,000 b/d of asphalt, more than any other refinery in Saudi Arabia.

Ras Tanura receives crude feedstock from the Abqaiq, Safaniya and Manifa oil field developments.

Crude is typically transferred to Ras Tanura through a pipeline and can also be supplied by ship.

Most of Ras Tanura’s production is transferred to the Dhahran bulk plant for domestic use, while some products are exported from the nearby Ras Tanura shipping terminal.

Iran retaliates

The drone strike on Ras Tanura added to a wave of Iranian attacks across the Gulf, including strikes on Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Doha, Manama and Oman’s commercial port of Duqm.

The strikes have paralysed major shipping hubs in the UAE and Oman.

So far, Iranian strikes have hit Bahrain, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the UAE. Iran retaliated by targeting Israel as well as designated sites in several regional countries hosting US bases, notably Qatar, the UAE and Bahrain.

The US and Israel launched an attack on Iran on 28 February, killing several top Iranian leaders, including Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

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