In recent days, the pace of attacks on oil and gas infrastructure in the Middle East has escalated, a development that has heightened the consequences of a conflict that has entered its third week. The disruption of sea supplies has been immediately felt across fuel stations thousands of kilometers away, while strikes targeting petrochemical facilities and gas stations on Wednesday and Thursday shook global markets.
In recent days, exchanges of strikes between the parties have targeted extraction, production, and storage facilities for fossil fuels. Reuters estimates that daily oil exports from the region have fallen by at least 60% compared to pre-war levels, leading to a spike in energy commodity prices and amplifying the economic impact of the conflict.
Since February 28, Israel and the United States have conducted airstrikes targeting fuel depots on limited occasions. However, last week, Iranian energy facilities have been directly included among the targets of these attacks.
Last Saturday, the United States launched a strike on military sites on Jarg Island, while avoiding targeting energy infrastructure to prevent further disruption in the global hydrocarbon market. The island, comparable in size to Spain's La Graciosa, is a crucial hub for the global energy sector and the Iranian economy, handling and exporting large quantities of the country’s oil. In a speech at the White House, President Trump threatened to direct missiles at that industry and destroy it "with just five minutes notice."
The strikes on Wednesday surpassed previous targeting limits when they reached Iranian energy production facilities for the first time. Israeli authorities did not claim responsibility for the strike, which impacted petrochemical plants in Pars Sur, the world's largest natural gas field shared by Iran and Qatar. Oil production facilities in Asaluyeh were also damaged, although government agencies did not provide detailed information about the extent of the damage.
The Iranian response was swift, with attacks reported on the same day in Qatar and Saudi Arabia. Iran specifically targeted U.S. allies in the region and Gulf oil and gas powers. On the same Wednesday, Iran hit the Qatari gas station at Ras Laffan, the largest gas station in the world, causing according to Qatar Energy "widespread damage."
The Qatari Energy Minister confirmed in an interview with Reuters that repairing the damage to energy infrastructure could take months and may lower the country's gas export capacity by about 17% due to the damage. This disruption has caused the price of natural gas in the European benchmark market to double since the start of the war.
The Iranian strikes aim to disrupt the global fossil fuel trade. On Thursday, two refineries in Kuwait sustained damage from fires caused by Iranian drones, while the United Arab Emirates closed the gas station in Habshan after debris from intercepted Iranian projectiles fell nearby.
Beyond its borders, the Islamic Republic struck Saudi oil facilities in the Red Sea, a passage that the Kingdom had been using to export part of its production following the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, where transit traffic has sharply declined.
This strategic passage routes a quarter of global natural gas production and a fifth of crude oil, as well as tons of critical materials for fertilizer production and other petroleum derivatives. The recent Iranian strikes suggest an expansion of the effects of the actual maritime blockade on the Strait of Hormuz, which has also shaken global energy markets.