Current developments in the Red Sea, especially Bab El Mandab, however, have exposed a critical weakness in that assumption. Related: ADNOC Issues Seventh Crude Tender Since June Despite Hormuz, Red Sea RisksWith Saudi Arabia's East-West Pipeline’s nameplate capacity of around seven million barrels per day, crude will reach Yanbu on the Red Sea. They must first travel north through the entire Red Sea before reaching the Suez Canal. Saudi crude exports rely on VLCCs, each capable of transporting around two million barrels of crude oil. The next major energy crisis may not be determined by how much oil Saudi Arabia can produce, but by how efficiently that oil can leave the Red Sea and reach the markets that depend upon it.