No fewer than 14 Saudi nationals were killed after a helicopter operated by state-owned oil giant Aramco crashed in eastern Saudi Arabia.
As gathered, the helicopter went down in Ras Tanura, a major oil hub in the kingdom’s Eastern Province. The aircraft was carrying 14 Saudi citizens, all of whom died in the crash.
The accident on Sunday was confirmed by the Saudi Arabian government through its state television, informing the public that rescue officials have been deployed to the scene.
“The accident claimed the lives of all 14 passengers, all Saudi citizens,” the agency quoted an official from the Ministry of Energy as saying. Authorities have launched an investigation to determine the cause of the accident.
Aramco, the world’s largest oil company, operates one of the region’s largest corporate aviation fleets, with more than 60 aircraft, including helicopters that serve over 300 heliports across Saudi Arabia.
The fatal crash occurred at a time when Gulf oil-producing nations are seeking to increase production following recent regional tensions, including Iranian attacks and the temporary closure of the Strait of Hormuz, a critical shipping route for global oil and gas exports.
Saudi authorities, however, stressed that there was no indication the helicopter crash was linked to any hostile or military activity.
Ras Tanura is home to one of the Middle East’s largest oil refineries, with a processing capacity of approximately 550,000 barrels of crude oil per day. The facility is a vital component of Saudi Arabia’s energy infrastructure and has previously been targeted during regional conflicts.
Earlier this year, Iranian drone attacks struck the refinery, triggering a fire and forcing a partial shutdown. Saudi Arabia also reported in April that weeks of attacks had disrupted production at several key energy facilities, including refineries in Ras Tanura, Jubail, Yanbu, and Riyadh.
As the world’s leading crude oil exporter, Saudi Arabia currently produces just over 10 million barrels of oil per day, making the security of its energy infrastructure a matter of both national and global importance.
The investigation into Sunday’s helicopter crash remains ongoing, and officials have yet to release further details about the circumstances surrounding the incident.