Oil field Reduced
Ghawar is currently reduced (since March 1, 2026): Saudi crude supply was 6.0 mb/d in August (IEA), the lowest in over three decades, as exports are squeezed by Hormuz, the Red Sea blockade and attacks. September exports were recovering via Gulf terminals (>4 mb/d provisional, Kpler).
Updated September 21, 2026 · View on the live map →
Saudi Arabia. World's largest conventional oil field. ~3.8M bpd. ~280 km long. Discovered 1948. Contains ~75+ billion barrels remaining recoverable reserves.
The field that underwrites Saudi Arabia's global influence. Ghawar's spare capacity allows Riyadh to function as the world's swing producer within OPEC+, unilaterally capable of crashing or spiking oil prices. This gives Saudi Arabia leverage that extends far beyond energy — into US defense relationships, Middle East diplomacy, and climate negotiations. Aramco's 2019 IPO valued the company at $2T, making it the world's most valuable, but also exposed Ghawar's declining natural pressure to investor scrutiny.
The IEA's September Oil Market Report said Saudi crude supply fell 2.3 mb/d month on month to 6 mb/d in August, citing Houthi-linked strikes on Bab el-Mandeb shipping, the Jazan refinery and shipping near Yanbu, and Iraqi militia drone strikes on Abqaiq. Saudi loadings fell 1.1 mb/d to 3.5 mb/d; the IEA cut its 2026 Saudi supply forecast to 7.6 mb/d and deferred full Gulf recovery to 2027.
Saudi Arabia said Iran-backed Iraqi militias launched drones at oil facilities in the Eastern Province and Riyadh; imagery showed damage and smoke at Aramco's Abqaiq processing facility (~7 mb/d capacity). US and Saudi aircraft struck militia sites in Iraq on 28 July. The IEA later cited the Abqaiq strikes among causes of Saudi supply losses.