Saudi Arabia eyes East-West pipeline expansion

Good morning, all. We lead today’s issue with a conversation with Dar Global CEO Ziad El Chaar, who let us in on the company’s target of foreign buyers making up around 30% of its local sales now that the market is open to international investors.

Around the block(ade)

Riyadh wants a bigger back door around Hormuz: Saudi Arabia is weighing expanding the capacity of its East-West pipeline to the Red Sea, Reuters reports, citing sources familiar with the matter. The route already handles up to 7 mn bbl / d — some 2 mn bbl / d for domestic refineries, the rest for export — and the move could allow the Kingdom, and potentially its neighbors, to ship more crude to global markets without crossing Hormuz.

Neighbors want in, too: Saudi is in preliminary talks with some of its neighbors — including Kuwait, Bahrain, and Qatar — about adding 1-2 mn bbl / d of capacity, with a line for refined products also on the table, the sources add.

Slowly, and maybe surely: The project could take years and cost bns — and would need the Kingdom to rework how it prices crude sold through an expanded system. Whether that means retrofitting the existing pipeline or laying new pipe alongside it is still unsettled.

It’s getting more pressing: A Saudi-flagged crude oil tanker, believed to ​be the supertanker Wedyan, was damaged off Oman yesterday, as attacks on three vessels near the Strait of Hormuz — including a Qatari LNG carrier that Qatar said was hit by an Iranian drone — raised fresh concerns over shipping safety in the waterway, Reuters reports. The cause of the attack on the Saudi tanker remains unclear.

Oil reax: Oil surged more than 5% yesterday, with Brent climbing to USD 76.03 in post-settlement trade and WTI to USD 72.20 after the US revoked the general license authorizing Iranian crude sales.

Tensions simmer: The US launched attacks on Iranian targets last night in retaliation (we have more in the news well, below). Iran’s foreign minister responded that talks on a final agreement would not proceed if US threats continued — a direct pushback to Trump’s warning to “finish the job.” It remains unclear whether the Iranian attacks reflect a deliberate escalation or were tied to mourning ceremonies for slain Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

Analysts flagged the broader risk regardless of intent. “This shows just how fragile the ceasefire actually is,” ICIS director Ajay Parmar said. “If Iran merely threatens to close the Strait of Hormuz again, prices will spike considerably. Volatility really is here to stay.”

A license to export green hydrogen

Acwa received government approval to export green hydrogen and its derivatives — including green ammonia, green methanol, and green fuel, according to a disclosure on Tadawul. The approval also tasks the company with developing projects to produce, transmit, and export renewable electricity to European and Arab markets.

Why this matters: The mandate positions Acwa as the Kingdom’s designated gateway for green hydrogen exports, centralizing a role that could be otherwise split between multiple developers. Along with the electricity export mandate, it signals Riyadh’s intent to position the Kingdom as a renewable energy supplier, not just a fossil fuels exporter.

REMEMBER- Acwa is already laying the groundwork for a second mega green hydrogen project in the Kingdom and exploring green fuel corridors to Europe.

Another ETF market maker

SNB Capital becomes second ETF market maker: SNB Capital secured approval from the Saudi Exchange to act as a market maker for the Sab Invest Hang Seng Hong Kong ETF under the Exchange Traded Funds Market Making Framework, according to a Tadawul disclosure. The arrangement takes effect today, requiring SNB Capital to maintain a minimum order presence of 80%, a minimum order size of SAR 50k, and a maximum spread of 2%.

REMEMBER- Sab Invest became the first entity to get the green light to act as a market maker for its Quant ETF. ETF market makers are exchange members that support liquidity in listed ETFs by continuously posting buy and sell orders.

Data point

25 — that’s the number of construction contracts awarded in Saudi Arabia in June 2026, the highest monthly count so far this year, according to a Saudi Contractors Authority report (pdf). Total value came in at SAR 29.5 bn — just shy of May’s SAR 30 bn, the highest monthly value seen all year.

The breakdown: Buildings dominated the mix at SAR 20.6 bn across 14 projects — 56% of total value. The Eastern Province saw the most projects awarded all month with 10 contracts worth a combined SAR 11.4 bn. The National Housing Company was the top project owner with six contracts worth SAR 5.4 bn, followed by Aramco with two worth a combined SAR 4.9 bn.

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The big story abroad

The US-Iran conflict has reignited, as the US military launched a series of retaliatory strikes against Iran, putting at risk the interim agreement inked between the two sides last month. The US Central Command said the attacks came in response to Iranian attacks on commercial vessels crossing the Strait of Hormuz earlier this week. The US strikes were reportedly launched against military targets.

Washington also revoked a waiver that allowed Tehran to sell oil openly on global markets. The 60-day exemption was issued last month, allowing the Islamic Republic to conduct such transactions in USD — even to US importers.

Iran has not claimed responsibility for the attacks on vessels in the strait, but reiterated its authority over parts of the waterway in a document submitted to the International Maritime Organization — the United Nations’ shipping agency.

We’ll be closely watching the Iranian response and how these developments impact oil prices — which dipped below USD 80 / bbl after the agreement and now sit around the USD 75 mark.

Meanwhile, in the world of AI: E-commerce behemoth Amazon plans to bankroll its AI investments by raising USD 25 bn in USD-denominated bond sales. This dovetails into a recent trend of tech players resorting to debt markets to build AI infrastructure, as seen by the likes of Alphabet, Microsoft, and Meta.

The latest offering from Meta’s AI overhaul is here — an image-generation model. Muse Spark Image can be used to generate images from scratch or edit existing images. It can also be used to power new editing features on Instagram.

And on Wall Street: Private equity firms are now saddled with a nine-year backlog of unsold companies — some 13.5k in the US alone — as potential buyers hesitate to buy software-heavy portfolios amid fears AI will disrupt tech-based business models, analysis by PwC finds. For reference, buyout firms typically aim to hold investments for around three to five years.

PLUS- Nato allies went on a USD 50 bn defense agreement spree during the summit in Ankara, signalling an attempt by Europe to meet demands from US President Donald Trump.