“If you’re going to Saudi Arabia to ask for additional supplies now, it’s the absolute wrong time. Saudi Arabia is in the middle of the summer. The summer burn is when they supply crude oil for electricity generation in the country, so their ability to add huge volumes is limited right now. It doesn’t make a lot of sense—especially if you look at the gasoline situation now. People are talking about the crunch at the end of this quarter not really being crude oil but more about refining capacity.” 

Frank Verrastro, Senior Advisor, Energy and Climate Change Program, CSIS. The Middle East and Global Energy Markets [Center for Strategic and International Studies]