Middle Eastern nations are scrambling to utilize and build inland pipelines as a double blockade of the Strait of Hormuz chokes off vital maritime oil and gas exports, plunging regional revenues to historic lows.

The maritime shutdown has left petrostates desperate for alternatives to sustain economies that experts warn can only hold out for weeks without severe financial ruin. 

While nations are testing truck and rail routes, energy analysts dismiss those options as costly, unrealistic patches for oil transport, shifting the regional focus squarely onto pipeline infrastructure.

Saudi Arabia has emerged as the only power with a significant, operational bypass. Riyadh is utilizing its East-West pipeline, known as Petroline, to pump crude from the Persian Gulf to Yanbu on the Red Sea. 

Originally built in the 1980s and expanded to a capacity of 7 million barrels per day in 2019, the pipeline carried roughly 4 million barrels per day during the first three weeks of March. 

Though crucial, this remains less than half of Saudi Arabia's pre-war production of over 10 million barrels, even as other nations face far steeper uphill battles.

The United Arab Emirates possesses a pipeline terminating at Fujairah, but the terminal has suffered repeated wartime attacks. 

Iraq, which saw its 3.5 million daily barrel exports collapse, is capping production to what domestic refineries can absorb.

To cope, Baghdad announced a $1.5 billion project to construct a 700-kilometer pipeline from Basra to Haditha, aimed at moving 2.5 million barrels per day to Syria and Turkey. However, officials admit construction will take at least two years. 

Efforts to revive an old pipeline from Kirkuk to Baniyas, Syria, have also stalled due to severe damage from decades of conflict.

"It's logical that they're seriously considering building new pipelines or expanding the capacity of existing ones," said Gonzalo Escribano, an energy director at the Elcano Royal Institute, noting the UAE is also exploring plans to double its pipeline capacity.

Still, experts warn that these corridors cannot fully offset the blockade. While soaring oil prices above $100 a barrel partially cushion Saudi Arabia's losses, total regional export volumes remain severely crippled.