Oil and gas prices rose as a projectile hit the Qatari-flagged Al Rekayyat near the Omani coast, reviving Strait of Hormuz supply fears and extending Qatar’s LNG outage that began in March.
Brent crude climbed about 5.38% to roughly $75.18 a barrel, with WTI near $71.85, after reports that a projectile struck the Qatari-flagged tanker Al Rekayyat on July 7-8 about 8 nautical miles off the Omani coast shortly after it exited the Strait of Hormuz. The strike hit the vessel’s port side and caused a fire, according to the newer report, prompting renewed concern over the security of energy shipments through the Gulf chokepoint. QatarEnergy then paused efforts to restart LNG production, extending a shutdown that began on March 2 after Iranian drone strikes in late February and after force majeure was declared on shipments. The disruption has broad market significance because Qatar accounts for about 20% of global LNG exports and its cargoes must pass through the Strait of Hormuz. Several Qatari LNG tankers reportedly turned back after the incident. The attacker has not been publicly identified, and there is no clear timeline for resuming Qatar’s LNG production, despite a June 24 statement from Qatar’s Prime Minister that output could restart “within a few weeks.”