Aramco’s Nasser sees slow recovery of oil when Strait opens

Saudi Aramco CEO Amin Nasser says no one should expect the oil market to rebound anytime soon. After the loss of 1 billion barrels with the near shutdown of the Strait of Hormuz, the vulnerability of global energy supplies is clear.

“The market will not rebalance overnight,” Nasser said Sunday, adding that any opening of Gulf shipping lanes will take time to make a substantial difference.

Prospects are dim even though Aramco reported a 26% jump in first-quarter net income to $33.6 billion, driven by higher crude prices as traders scrambled to price in war risk and supply shortages across the Gulf, Reuters reports.

Aramco has been rerouting exports through its East-West Pipeline to the Red Sea port of Yanbu to bypass Hormuz, helping Saudi Arabia keep oil flowing while attacks and shipping restrictions disrupted normal Gulf traffic.

The outlook for oil prices is hazier with the UAE’s pullout from OPEC after years of friction with Saudi Arabia and other producers over the enforcement of supply quotas to keep prices up.