By Tsvetana Paraskova
Saudi Arabia may be looking to build an oil port in Yemen’s southeast al-Mahra governorate, where the Saudi-led coalition troops are present, Al Jazeera reported on Monday, quoting sources and a document it has obtained.
Saudi Arabia-based marine construction company Huta Marine has sent a letter to the Saudi ambassador to Yemen in which it thanks the official for the opportunity to submit a technical and financial proposal for the future oil port, according to the document that Al Jazeera has obtained.
The al-Mahra governorate borders Oman, and the border crossing, as well as the seaport and airport in the governorate, is under the control of the Saudi and UAE coalition, which has been fighting the Iran-aligned Houthi rebels in Yemen since 2015.
Earlier this month, Yemen was said to have resumed oil exports.
Despite a worsening humanitarian crisis in Yemen amid a war between the Houthi rebels and a coalition between Saudi Arabia and the UAE, the poorest Arab country has found a way to restart oil production and has even exported the first cargo: 500,000 barrels from a field in the southern Shabwa province bound for a Chinese company, The National reports.
This is the first outbound shipment of crude oil from Yemen since 2015 when a civil war broke out and quickly escalated into an international conflict. The oil was offered in an open tender, in which 35 companies from around the world took part, the Yemeni ministry of oil and minerals said in a statement.
Now there are plans to restart the rest of the oil fields in Shabwa and neighboring provinces, the secretary to the oil and minerals minister told The Emirati daily. The provinces are under the control of the elected government that the Houthis are fighting as a result of the intervention of the Saudi and Emirati forces.
Source: Oilprice.com
