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Secretary Wright Tells CNBC at G20 in Houston That Saudi Pipeline Outage Will Last Days

September 15, 2026 · U.S. Department of Energy · 0:04:07

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What happened

Energy Secretary Chris Wright joined CNBC from Houston, where he had just come off stage announcing another deal with Japan for additional manufacturing investment in the United States, according to the interview. Asked about the shutdown of Saudi Arabia’s east-west pipeline and reports that the Saudis were canceling some cargoes to European refineries, Wright attributed the disruption to attacks backed by Iran through proxy groups.

Wright said the Saudis were capable operators and predicted the pipeline would be running again very soon, with the outage measured in days rather than longer. He said that in the intervening days, additional Saudi oil would move through the Strait of Hormuz in cooperation with the U.S. military to keep supply flowing.

Wright also criticized California energy policy, saying 60 percent of California’s oil is imported from abroad, with Iraq a major supplier, even though the United States is a net oil exporter. He said California had made energy expensive in both peacetime and conflict and had failed repeatedly on energy.

Why it matters

The remarks tied the administration’s energy-security case together in one appearance: Middle East supply disruptions managed with U.S. military support, allied investment deals announced at the G20, and state-level policies blamed for high prices at home.

Sources: U.S. Department of Energy, “Secretary Wrights Joins CNBC from G20 in Houston, Texas—September 15, 2026”, 2026-09-15 (official upload, embedded above; published 2026-09-15). Transcript via Supadata (private research store, paraphrased and attributed, not republished). All figures and characterizations as stated by the speakers.