Asian Refiners Seek Alternative Pickup Point for Saudi Crude

Heightened risks to shipping safety in the Red Sea have prompted some Asian refiners to ask Saudi state oil giant Aramco to pick up its crude oil cargoes at Egypt’s Mediterranean port of Sidi Kerir as vessel owners are increasingly reluctant to pass through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait to enter the Red Sea. At least two Asia-based refiners have asked Saudi Aramco if they can pick up their purchased oil cargoes next month from Sidi Kerir instead of the Saudi port of Yanbu on the Red Sea, anonymous trading sources told Bloomberg on Monday. But…