Oil rises as Aramco staff reportedly told to leave offices

Aramco has reportedly ordered staff out of its Dhahran headquarters, leaving the cause and any effect on oil operations unclear.

Employees received instructions to leave the building and continue their duties remotely, according to six people described as having knowledge of the matter. The Saudi state-controlled oil producer did not immediately answer a request for comment on October 22, and the reason for the instruction was not established.

The reported evacuation concerns an administrative headquarters, not a confirmed shutdown of production or exports. Neither an interruption to crude deliveries nor the duration of the remote-working arrangement was established.

Saudi shares fall as crude rises

Saudi Arabia’s main equity benchmark fell 2.5% following news of the evacuation instruction, according to LSEG figures. Brent futures meanwhile reached their strongest level since May, putting the reported office closure alongside a rise in crude prices.

At 1104 GMT, Brent traded at $111.88 per barrel, gaining $3.06, equivalent to 2.81%, according to the reported market figures. Its earlier peak of $112.55 marked the highest level since May 18.

Those movements do not establish whether physical supplies have changed. The distinction matters for Aramco: relocating office staff is different from losing the ability to produce, process or ship oil, and no such operational loss was confirmed.

Yanbu claims await Saudi confirmation

Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Saree said the group had attacked Aramco sites in Yanbu, a Saudi city on the Red Sea, as well as the defense ministry in Riyadh. Saudi officials had not confirmed those claims.

The Saudi-led coalition separately reported intercepting drones above Riyadh and Medina. Its statement did not establish whether the targets identified by Saree had been struck or whether any Aramco facility sustained damage.

The fighting follows a truce arranged through the UN in 2022 that had largely suspended attacks across the Saudi-Yemeni border. Renewed hostilities have involved the Iran-aligned Houthis and the Saudi-led coalition, which supports Yemen’s internationally recognized government.

The conflict also extends toward Bab el-Mandeb, the narrow passage connecting shipping routes at the southern entrance to the Red Sea. The Houthis’ advance toward that passage forms part of the recent escalation, placing maritime access alongside Saudi infrastructure among the issues at stake.

Airport reopening contrasts with office uncertainty

Saudi Arabia’s General Authority of Civil Aviation said normal flights had resumed at King Fahd International Airport following an attack the previous evening. The airport serves Dammam, near Dhahran, but its reopening does not establish the security conditions at Aramco’s headquarters.

If the evacuation remains limited to office work and crude shipments continue, its direct effect on Aramco would concern workplace continuity rather than lost output. Under that scenario, an interruption-driven squeeze on global energy supplies or on the wider oil industry would not follow from the evacuation alone.

If attacks instead disrupt production or shipping, reduced availability could raise costs for importers and complicate supply planning for refiners. For Aramco, the immediate questions are whether facilities remain operational, whether deliveries continue and when staff can return; none was resolved by the reported evacuation instruction.