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Report: Saudi oil output hit by drone attacks on Aramco sites

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Report: Saudi oil output hit by drone attacks on Aramco sites

Saudi Arabian Oil Co.'s Abqaiq and Khurais oil processing plants caught fire after being targeted in drone attacks claimed by Yemen's Houthi rebel group Sept. 14.

The kingdom's oil production was cut nearly in half by the incident, with output reduced by up to 5 million barrels of oil per day, people familiar with the matter told Bloomberg News and The Wall Street Journal. The lost output is roughly equivalent to 5% of global supplies per day.

The company believes it will be able to restart output fairly quickly, Bloomberg reported, citing an unidentified source ahead of an official announcement. The attack is not expected to impact customers for several weeks due to Saudi oil stockpiles stored around the world.

Later on Sept. 14, The Associated Press reported Saudi officials as saying they expected oil production to be back at normal levels by Sept. 16.

The Saudi Press Agency issued a statement saying that the oil giant's response teams controlled the fires at the production sites without disclosing the extent of damage or if there were any casualties.

"At 4:00 am on Saturday... the industrial security teams of Aramco Company controlled two fires in two factories belonging to the company in the City of Abqaiq and Khurais Village, targeted by drones … the competent authorities started their investigation procedures," the state-run press agency said citing a Ministry of Interior spokesman.

The company has not yet issued any statement. Abqaiq is home to the world's largest oil processing plant, according to Reuters.

According to media reports, the Yemeni militia outfit Houthi claimed responsibility for the attacks. A spokesperson for the rebels reportedly said during a televised broadcast that the militant group had sent 10 drones to attack the Saudi Aramco sites, warning that "our targets will keep expanding."

The news comes less than a month after the oil giant's Shaybah natural gas liquids facility was attacked by Houthi rebels using drones.

According to a recent report, Saudi Aramco has accelerated plans for its IPO by shortlisting nine banks.