Qatar’s LNG giant hit as fires and damage rock global gas market

Key topics:Qatari LNG plant hit by Iranian missile, causing major fires and damage.Global gas prices surge amid halted production and market uncertainty.Qatar expels Iranian staff, condemns attacks as regional security threat..Sign up for your early morning brew of the BizNews Insider to keep you up to speed with the content that matters. The newsletter will land in your inbox every morning on weekdays. Register here.Support South Africa's bastion of independent journalism, offering balanced insights on investments, business, and the political economy, by joining BizNews Premium. Register here.If you prefer WhatsApp for updates, sign up to the BizNews channel here..By Ruth Liao and Sherif Tarek.A Qatari complex housing the world’s largest liquefied natural gas export plant suffered “extensive damage” amid a sharp escalation of attacks on energy facilities across the Persian Gulf. The Ras Laffan Industrial City, home to the LNG plant that accounted for about a fifth of global supply before production was halted earlier this month, was hit by an Iranian missile after four others were intercepted, authorities said late Wednesday. Hours later, Abu Dhabi shut its Habshan gas facilities after they were hit by falling debris from an intercepted strike.A subsequent attack on Ras Laffan early on Thursday led to a fire, which Qatari authorities said they were dealing with. QatarEnergy said in a statement that several of its LNG facilities were hit, causing sizable fires and extensive further damage. The attack on Wednesday also resulted in extensive damage to Shell Plc’s gas—to-liquids plant at Ras Laffan, QatarEnergy said.The US would retaliate if Qatar’s LNG facilities were attacked again, President Donald Trump said in a post on Truth Social..Read more:.Israel launches rare attack on Hamas leaders in Qatari capital Doha.“If there is damage to the LNG plant, this is obviously more consequential, particularly given the limited inventories or stocks of LNG,” said Neil Beveridge, managing director of research at Bernstein. “There is no strategic reserve for LNG.”The incidents mark yet another escalation in hostilities in the region and follow a string of attacks targeting oil and gas infrastructure in recent days. Crude and natural gas prices surged earlier in the day after Israel attacked Iran’s giant South Pars gas field. Tehran responded with a warning that several energy sites in Qatar, Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates had become “legitimate targets.” “A retaliatory attack on Ras Laffan is exactly what the global natural gas market feared the most,” said Tom Marzec-Manser, Europe gas and LNG director at consultancy Wood Mackenzie Ltd. “We’re yet to know which part of the industrial complex has been damaged, but either way it’s going to be bullish for gas prices when the market opens on Thursday.”Brent oil futures extended gains after the attacks, rising as much as 5.5% on Thursday.State-controlled QatarEnergy said all personnel were accounted for at its LNG facility, which had been evacuated hours earlier. Qatar’s interior ministry said the fire caused by the first strike was under control. Qatar “considers this aggression a dangerous escalation and a flagrant violation of the state’s sovereignty, as well as a direct threat to its national security and the stability of the region,” the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a social media post. It later ordered Iranian military and security attaches as well as affiliate staff to leave the country within 24 hours.“The willingness of Iran to attack Qatari infrastructure is a major escalation,” said Richard Pratt, a consultant at Precision LNG Consulting LLC. “Uncertainty over the impact will roil markets for sure.” The Abu Dhabi Media Office said in a post on X that no injuries were reported at Habshan. Abu Dhabi National Oil Co. operates one of the world’s largest onshore gas processing facilities there, with 14 trains able to produce more than 6 billion cubic feet of gas a day, enough to supply South Korea. The Saudi Defense Ministry also said the country had thwarted a drone attack targeting a gas facility in its eastern region. In a separate incident, shrapnel from a ballistic missile fell near a south Riyadh refinery.Ras Laffan Industrial City covers 295 square kilometers in area (114 square miles), about one-third the size of New York City. As well as LNG processing, it’s also home to other gas-related facilities, including a gas-to-liquids plant, LNG storage, and condensate splitters, as well as an oil refinery.The site was effectively cut off from the rest of the world by the throttling of tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz following US and Israeli attacks on Iran. Production was halted earlier this month after an Iranian drone attack, leading QatarEnergy to declare force majeure on deliveries, throwing the global LNG market into turmoil and sending buyers scrambling for alternative supplies..Read more:.Iran’s nuclear sites smashed as US strikes ignite global tensions - Mills/Hartley.The market impact has been particularly severe in Asia and Europe, as both regions rely on imported gas for power generation. The latest attacks have raised questions about how long supply will be impacted even once the strait reopens. “It’s now hard to see Qataris coming back to the market before the middle of the year and even that is ambitious,” said Ira Joseph, global fellow at the Center on Global Energy Policy at Columbia University.Shell said it’s assessing any potential impact from the attack..© 2026 Bloomberg L.P.

Qatar’s LNG giant hit as fires and damage rock global gas market

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