Drone attacks vs Saudi oil facilities to affect Philippines ‘deeply’ — Locsin

MANILA, Philippines — Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr. on Sunday said drone attacks against the two major oil facilities in Saudi Arabia would affect the Philippines “deeply.”

Locsin expressed worry over the looming oil shortage and oil price hike amid the attacks.

"This is serious. It wil l— not could — affect us deeply; to put it bluntly, an oil shortage or steep rise in oil price will rock the Philippine boat and tip it over," Locsin said on Twitter. "So everybody shut the f*** up and focus. No more clowns. Declaring state of emergency won't save our economy but kill it," he added.

This is serious. It will—not could—affect us deeply; to put it bluntly, an oil shortage or steep rise in oil price will rock the Philippine boat & tip it over. So everybody shut the fuck up and focus. No more clowns. Declaring state of emergency won't save our economy but kill it https://t.co/yzMvNwxkoI

— Teddy Locsin Jr. (@teddyboylocsin) September 15, 2019

On Saturday, state-owned Aramco oil plants, Albqaiq and Khurais, faced drone attacks claimed by Iran-aligned Yemeni rebels.

The strikes sparked fire on the oil facilities and severely disrupted production or halted half of its total output. Abqaiq plant is Aramco’s largest oil processing facility while Khurais hosts a massive oil field.

The company said the attacks “resulted in production suspension of 5.7 million barrels of crude oil per day.”

Saudi’s Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman said that the explosions also interrupted the production of an estimated two billion cubic feet of gas per day.

Aramco CEO Amin Nasser on Sunday said the company is working to restore production. He added that the firm would issue a progress update in the coming days.

The Iran-linked Huthi rebels said they launched "a large-scale operation involving 10 drones" on the facilities, the group's Al-Masirah television reported.

The latest attacks come as Saudi Arabia gears up for the initial public offering of Aramco, the world's most profitable company.

Meanwhile, the Philippine Embassy in Riyadh advised the Filipinos in Saudi Arabia to remain vigilant amid the drone attacks.

"The Embassy is closely monitoring the situation and coordinating with the concerned authorities to ensure the safety and security of all Filipinos in Saudi Arabia," it said in a statement. —Rosette Adel with reports from Agence France-Presse