It is worth noting that the risk of Iran closing off the Strait of Hormuz was precisely what made Saudi Arabia decide to build the East-West pipeline in the first place, back in the 1980s…
Meanwhile, its neighbor and former fellow OPEC member, the UAE, will have to build a new pipeline to insulate itself from potential future Hormuz trouble. The country already has one pipeline that ships oil to the port of Fujairah, which sits right outside the Strait of Hormuz, but it now plans to double its capacity with a new pipe, from 1.8 million barrels daily to 3.6 million barrels daily—and it wants to do it fast. The new pipeline is scheduled to be ready by the end of next year…
Iraq is also considering a network of other pipelines to Mediterranean ports in Syria and Jordan as a way of bypassing Hormuz…There is a separate initiative to build a pipeline network connecting the Middle East’s oil fields to port cities in the Mediterranean, with Turkey and Syria becoming major regional energy export hubs.
All the alternative require some time to set up. And decisions on how long the Straits problem will last.
Trucking fertilizer to RedSea ports is probably past experience and easy to restart. But truck and port capacity can be limited. Do you invest to expand? Do you charter more ships? Can they find dock space? Do you bring in trucks and drivers from around the region? And costs will be higher. Will it pay off?
Same for building more pipelines. Probably two years to build. Profits uncertain but maybe very profitable while Straits are closed.
Unless Iran (or whatever other actor might decide otherwise, including independent terror groups) to blow it up, in which case it becomes useless overnight, just like a tanker sitting at the wrong end of the Strait. A pipeline is a sitting duck, unable to move, exceptionally difficult to defend along its entire route, able to be taken out with a single drone strike.
I’m not saying it isn’t a good idea, it’s just not a fool-proof idea, not by a long shot (pun intended.)
I believe the pipeline extends through Israel to the Mediterranean
GoogleAI:
You are likely referring to one of several overlapping pipeline concepts that use Israel as a land bridge to connect the Middle East with the Mediterranean Sea. [1, 2]
A breakdown of the specific pipelines and regional plans clarifies this:
1. The Trans-Israel Pipeline (Eilat–Ashkelon)
Route: Extends from the Gulf of Aqaba on the Red Sea (Eilat) to the Mediterranean port of Ashkelon.
Function: Serves as a land bridge to bypass maritime routes like the Suez Canal or Bab el-Mandeb. It is bidirectional, capable of moving crude oil from the Mediterranean to the Red Sea or vice-versa.
Route: A proposed offshore and onshore network designed to transport natural gas from Israel’s Levantine Basin (such as the Leviathan and Tamar fields) to Europe.
Function: Aims to help satisfy European Union natural gas needs and reduce reliance on Russian energy.
3. Proposed Persian Gulf-to-Mediterranean Corridor
Route: Extends west from the Persian Gulf, running through Saudi Arabia and Jordan, before crossing into Israel and terminating at Mediterranean ports like Haifa. [1, 2, 3, 4]
Function: Pitched by Israeli leadership as a permanent, long-term economic strategy to bypass critical chokepoints like the Strait of Hormuz. [1]
Details: Learn more about the current geopolitical discussions surrounding this initiative via the Pipeline Journal.
Yes, and what is security like on pipelines in the U.S. In NJ massive 4 ft dia NG pipelines come to surface at pumping stations. Virtually no security. One exploded years ago in Edison NJ when someone used a backhoe near a pipeline to bury a friends pickup truck as a joke.
