Hi,
The closing of Strait of Hormuz by Iran this week brought back to mind (with the help of Hayot Kiss podcast) the oil pipelines that Israel used and still have to bypass of the Strait of Hormuz.
Just look in the picture below and you can see how Israel strategic location in the middle east can help to bypass the closing of Strait of Hormuz by Iran. The most efficient pipeline is the Tapline (I wrote about it several times here and here for example).
Selected Oil & Gas Pipelines in the Middle East. As this map is from Lebanon source, you will not see Israel, but you will see occupied Palestine… (Source: American university of Beirut)
The Tapline used to lead the oil to a port in Lebanon from 1950 until 1990. It can be redirect to lead the oil from Persian Gulf to Haifa port (As Lebanon is unstable for several decades until now).
Another important pipeline is the Kirkuk–Haifa that from 1934 until 1948 used to lead oil from North Iraq to Haifa Port. After independence of Israel a new pipeline was built on 1950 from Kirkuk to Tripoli in Lebanon. Another pipeline was built from the oil fields Kirkuk to Ceyhan in Tureky in 1970 to supply the oil to another port on the Mediterranean sea shore. Just proving how pipelines are needed in the middle east.
You can see on the map above two major pipelines crossing the Arab desert and leading the oil from oil fields on the east of Saudi Arabia (on the Persian Gulf) to Yanub in the Red Sea. Those pipeline shortly dramatically the time and way the ship has to go, but there still have a long way to the Mediterranean sea (including crossing the Suez Canal – which costs time and money)
By creating this Bypass can also help to shorten the cost of exporting the oil to western countries (Europe and USA). As the oil will get directly to Mediterranean sea and will save the ships to circle around the Arab Peninsula.
Bottom Line: Israel and friendly Arab countries in the Middle east can benefit from rebuilding the pipe lines that used to cross the desert to bring faster and quicker to the west worlds. And on the same time build new pipelines to also supply gas for it.
Take Care
Gad