Saudi Arabia intercepts drone targeting Shaybah oil field; 2 foreign workers killed by falling debris

[Financial News]  

Two foreign workers were killed in a drone attack on the Shaybah oil field, a key oil facility in eastern Saudi Arabia.
In a statement on the 21st (local time), Saudi Arabia’s Energy Ministry said air defenses had intercepted that morning a drone targeting facilities at the Shaybah oil field in eastern Saudi Arabia, operated by Saudi Aramco, the country’s state-owned oil company.
According to sources, debris that fell shortly after the interception struck a vehicle belonging to a subcontractor working at the site outside the oil field, starting a fire. Two workers from the Philippines and Nepal were killed in the fire, while two workers from Pakistan and India were injured.
The Energy Ministry said the oil field’s main operations were unaffected.
The Shaybah oil field in eastern Saudi Arabia is one of the world’s largest and is operated by Saudi Aramco. It lies deep in the Rub' al Khali Desert in southeastern Saudi Arabia, near the border with the United Arab Emirates (UAE). It is a key part of Saudi Arabia’s economic infrastructure, producing about 1 million barrels a day of Arabian Extra Light crude. It was also the target of a large-scale drone attack by Yemen’s Houthi rebels in August 2019.

[email protected] Song Kyung-jae Reporter