As war strands Qatari gas for 6 months, US sales rise and European stocks plummet
- LNG cargo exports down to 18 from 509 year ago
- Lost income equivalent to five months’ state revenue, Reuters calculations show
- US firms have raised LNG exports
- EU gas stocks at record lows for time of year
LONDON/OSLO, Aug 26 (Reuters) — Six months into the U.S.-Iran war, Qatar is among the conflict’s biggest economic casualties, with its liquefied natural gas exports slashed by 96%, data shows.
Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Iraq and Kuwait have seen their oil exports hit, but by nowhere near as much.
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Qatar has lost $24 billion in gas sales, which is about five months’ worth of income for the country based on 2025 data, Reuters calculations show.
While neighbouring Gulf exporters have managed to sneak oil secretly out of the Strait of Hormuz, Qatar has exported just 18 LNG cargoes, down from 509 in the same period last year, according to data intelligence firm ICIS. Two Qatari tankers have been attacked.
State-owned LNG producer QatarEnergy did not respond to a Reuters request for immediate comment.
Before the war Qatar supplied about one-fifth of the world’s daily LNG. Exports from the U.S. have offset some of that lost supply.
Still, European gas storage has fallen to a historic low for the time of year, exposing the continent to possible gas price spikes in the event of a cold winter this year.
(USD 1 = QAR 3.64)
Reporting by Marwa Rashad in London, Nora Buli in Oslo and Curtis Williams in Houston; editing by Jason Neely
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Marwa Rashad covers LNG and natural gas out of London, with a focus on Europe. She was part of a team awarded “Reuters Journalist of the Year” in 2022 for the coverage of the European Energy Crisis. Previously, She spent a decade in Saudi Arabia, the Middle East’s largest economy and the world’s top oil exporter, covering a broad range of topics including the impact of the 2011 oil boom, the 2015 oil slump, the Kingdom’s economic transformation and its efforts to diversify away from hydrocarbons, Saudi Aramco IPO and provided an in-depth understanding of the kingdom’s young crown prince’s ambitious reform agenda. She was part of Reuters team awarded 2018 “scoop of the year” for coverage of the murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi. Marwa joined Reuters in 2009 in Cairo, Egypt.