Mid-East Contagion Fears for Saudi Oil Fields -- The Telegraph
Risk analysts and intelligence agencies fear that Egypt's uprising may set off escalating protests in the tense Shia region of Saudi Arabia, home to the world's richest oilfields.
"Yemen, Sudan, Jordan and Syria all look vulnerable. However, the greatest risk in terms of both probability and severity is in Saudi Arabia," said a report by risk consultants Exclusive Analysis.
While markets have focused on possible disruption to the Suez Canal, conduit for 8pc of global shipping, it is unlikely that Egyptian leaders of any stripe would cut off an income stream worth $5bn (£3.1bn) a year to the Egyptian state.
"I don't think the Egyptians will ever dare to touch it," said Opec chief Abdalla El-Badri, adding that the separate Suez oil pipeline is "very well protected". The canal was blockaded after the Six Days War in 1967.
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My Comment: For the moment .... Saudi Arabia's oil fields are safe. But with many in the Arab world now galvanized with what is happening in Egypt/Tunisia/Yemen and elsewhere .... who knows if Saudi Arabia's Shiite population and disaffected Saudi youths may hit the streets and plunge Saudi Arabia into political and social anarchy.
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