Industry

Qatar's Ras Laffan facilities have come under attack. (Image source: Adobe Stock)

Oil and gas prices have risen sharply on 19 March following renewed attacks by Iran on Gulf energy infrastructure

They followed Israel’s strike on Iran’s giant South Pars gas field, which marked a major escalation of the conflict.

Iran retaliated by issuing an evacuation warning identifying Saudi Arabia’s SAMREF refinery and Jubail petrochemical complex, the UAE’s al-Hosn gas field and Qatar’s Mesaieed petrochemical complex and Ras Laffan refinery as targets.

On 18 March, QatarEnergy said Iranian missile attacks on Ras Laffan, the site of Qatar’s main LNG processing operations, caused extensive damage to the Pearl GTL (Gas-to-Liquids) facility. On 19 March the company confirmed that in the early hours, several of its LNG facilities were the subject of missile attacks, causing sizeable fires and extensive further damage. Emergency response teams were deployed immediately to contain the resulting damage with no reported casualties. Qatar had earlier in March halted liquefaction operations after its Ras Laffan facilities were hit by an Iranian drone. 

QatarEnergy CEO Saad al-Kaabi told Reuters that the damage caused by Iran’s attack on its facilities has wiped out 17% of their operating capacity and would cost around US$26bn to repair. As a result, the company may need to declare force majeure on long-term contracts for natural gas supplies with Italy, Belgium, Korea and China for up to five years. QatarEnergy had earlier in the month declared force majeur on LNG production after the earlier attacks on Ras Laffan. 

The UAE is reported to have stopped operations at its Habshan gas facility and Bab field after intercepting a drone attack, while Kuwait’s Mina Al Ahmadi and Mina Abdullah refineries were hit by a drone, triggering fires, which were successfully extinguished without any injuries, according to a statement from Kuwait Petroleum Corporation (KPC).

While Reuters reported on 19 March that Aramco’s SAMREF refinery, a joint venture between Aramco and ExxonMobil in the Red Sea port of Yanbu, was targeted but with minimal impact. Yanbu has become a key alternative export route for crude oil via the East-West pipeline, with the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz.

Attacks on Gulf energy facilities prompted US President Trump to threaten to “massively blow up” the South Pars field if Iran continues to target Qatar’s LNG facilities.

Oil and European natural gas prices rose sharply on 19 March with Brent crude up 6% to US$114, the highest level since the spike at the beginning of the conflict, while European gas prices rose by 25-30% to double pre-conflict levels, reflecting supply concerns given Qatar accounts for around 20% of seaborne LNG trade.

Matthieu Favas, commodity editor at the Economist, commented on the BBC’s Today programme that the hope would be that Qatar's gas facility is "restarted within weeks", but after several direct attacks this is unlikely to happen. He added that the summer months could see competition for LNG supplies, with increased demand from countries needing power for air conditioning and European and Asian countries looking to restock.

Energy consultancy Rystad Energy notes that the five facilities targeted by Iran collectively account for around 20% of global LNG trade, up to 10% of Asia-Pacific naphtha imports and more than 6% of global polyethylene capacity, concentrated in a geography with no short-term substitute. With facilities in Saudi Arabia, UAE and Qatar all hit at least 700,000 barrels per day of refined product capacity could be removed from global markets overnight, hitting diesel, jet fuel and naphtha supply simultaneously across three countries.

“The breadth of what is at risk here in fuels, chemicals, LNG and fertiliser inputs is what makes this moment qualitatively different from previous episodes of Gulf tension,” the energy consultancy comments.

"Qatar is particularly exposed given the concentration of its LNG infrastructure at Ras Laffan, which is closely tied to the broader North Field, the extension of Iran's South Pars gas field. Any disruption here would not only affect regional supply but ripple through global LNG markets, with Asia bearing the brunt given its dependence on Qatari volumes," commented Aditya Saraswat, senior vice president at Rystad Energy.

Gulf ministers and governments have decried the attacks on their critical energy and civiian infrastructure. In an impassioned LinkedIn post, Dr Sultan Al Jaber, UAE Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology, said "These are civilian facilities, operated by civilian engineers, sustaining economies and everyday life far beyond our region. This is an unjustified, unprovoked and illegal attack on a peaceful nation. But it is not just a regional issue - it is global economic warfare. Energy flows are being weaponised."

The transaction will preserve Petrofac's engineering and execution capability. (Image source: Petrofac)

Petrofac has entered into an agreement to sell Petrofac Emirates to a consortium of financial investors led by Mason Capital Management LLC and Pearlstone Alternative (UK) LLP

Petrofac Emirates encompasses Petrofac's core Engineering & Construction (E&C) capability, including the E&C execution teams in the UAE, Chennai and Mumbai. The transaction will position Petrofac Emirates as a strong, self-sustaining company with no funded debt on its balance sheet and substantial growth opportunities, according to Petrofac.

Tareq Kawash, Group chief executive of Petrofac, said, “This is a great outcome for Petrofac Emirates and marks another milestone in Petrofac Group’s restructuring. It preserves Petrofac’s execution and engineering capability and delivers continuity for the contracts currently under execution. Mason has significant experience in our industry and we believe this transaction will enable Petrofac Emirates to grow ambitiously and build on its extensive track record. I want to express my gratitude to the Petrofac team, our customers and our partners for their support which has been critical in this process. With Petrofac Emirates’ strong presence and experience in the UAE, it is well positioned for future success in our home market as well as in the wider MENA region.”

Sam Read, Partner at Mason, said, “Our mission is to empower Petrofac Emirates to achieve its strategic goals, capitalise on new market opportunities, and leverage significant growth potential in the dynamic energy engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) sector. Petrofac Emirates has market-leading capabilities and an unmatched track record of delivering for its customers, and we look forward to partnering with the company to help drive continued success.”

James Bennett, senior managing director at Teneo and Joint Administrator of Petrofac Limited, said that the deal gives the business a clear route forward under new ownership and supports a smooth transition for customers, suppliers and employees.

Completion of the transaction is subject to certain conditions, including customary governance, regulatory and stakeholder approvals which will be obtained as promptly as possible.

In January, Petrofac creditors approved the sale of the company’s Asset Solutions business to CB&I.

Aramco alone accounts for nearly 40% of the total market value of all listed companies in the region. (Image source: Aramco)

Aramco, the world’s largest energy company, has once again topped the Forbes list of the Middle East’s 100 most valuable companies, with a market value of US$1.7 trillion

The energy giant recorded a revenue of US$446bn and net income of US$104.7bn in 2025.

Other energy companies featuring in the top 10 included the UAE’s utilities and energy company TAQA, in fourth place with a market value of US$87.9bn, and ADNOC Gas in sixth place, with a market value of $75.4 billion. Other energy or energy-related companies in the list included Saudi Arabia’s SABIC, Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA), Saudi Arabia’s Acwa, the UAE’s ADNOC Drilling, ADNOC Distribution and ADNOC Logistics and Services, Saudi Electricity Company, Oman’s OQ Exploration & Production (OQEP), Saudi Arabia’s ADES Holding, TAQA Morocco, the UAE’s Empower, Saudi Arabia’s Luberef, and Qatar’s Nebras Energy.

While banking and financial services remains the sector with most representation, with 34 companies represented and a combined market value of US$732.6bn, the energy sector features just nine companies on the list, but still accounts for US$1.9 trillion in market capitalisation, underlining how central hydrocarbons remain to the region’s corporate balance sheet and reflecting Aramco’s dominance.

The UAE leads the ranking by numbers, with 35 companies on the list, followed closely by Saudi Arabia with 34. Qatar placed 11 companies, Morocco nine, and Kuwait six. However, in terms of scale, Saudi Arabia dominates, with Saudi-listed firms making up US$2.4 trillion of the combined market value of the top 100 – around 64% of the total. Aramco is again a factor, alone accounting for nearly 40% of the total market value of all listed companies in the region.

The ranking is based on market capitalisation data from 12 stock exchanges across 11 MENA countries. Across the 12 stock exchanges, total market capitalisation in MENA reached US$4.3 trillion in January 2026, with the region’s top 100 listed companies accounting for US$3.7 trillion of that figure. Overall, GCC countries account for 88% of the companies in the ranking, with the top 10 split evenly between the UAE and Saudi Arabia, reinforcing their role as the region’s two corporate centres of gravity.

Oil prices remain high due to the US/Iran war. (Image source: Adobe Stock)

The oil price continues to hover at around US$100/bbl, despite the largest ever release of emergency oil stocks by IEA member countries

Stocks will be made available by IEA Member countries in Asia Oceania immediately while stocks from IEA Member countries in the Americas and Europe will be made available starting from the end of March, to mitigate what the IEA calls “the largest supply disruption in the history of the global oil market.”

The oil price reflects continued supply concerns, with no end in sight of the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz, through which around 20mn bpd of oil had previously passed. With Iran threatening to attack ships of those it considers US allies, as well as the threat of potential mines, traffic through the critical chokepoint has almost ground to a halt, prompting President Trump to call for US allies to send ships to secure the Strait.

Nick Butler, head of Strategy at bp and former to adviser to former UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown, warned on the BBC’s today programme that there is likely to be a “significant shortfall of supply over the next two months”, which governments need to prepare for, with a physical shortage of supply in a few weeks’ time. He warned of price volatility and competition between governments for supply.

The Gulf’s energy infrastructure remains under threat from Iran, with Fujairah, a critical storage and bunkering hub, most recently recording damage from drone strikes.

Gulf shut-ins could reduce regional crude output by 70% to around 6mn bpd if the US-Iran war drags on, according to energy consultancy Rystad Energy.

“Further cuts from major Middle East oil producers cannot be ruled out as storage tanks fill to the brim, bypass infrastructure approaches its limit, and the conflict shows no sign of a near-term resolution.

"Although the likelihood of oil supply falling to 6mn bpd is not our central case, it is still very much in the cards. If and when the crisis reaches an end, it will take months to restore operations to pre-conflict levels, with the questions of infrastructure integrity and a recalibrated geopolitical order still at play,” said Aditya Saraswat, MENA research director, Rystad Energy.

International energy companies have also reported disruption to their operations in the region, with TotalEnergies reporting that production has been shut down or is in the process of shutting down in Qatar, Iraq and UAE offshore, representing approximately 15% of its total output. However operations at the Satorp refinery in Saudi Arabia are currently not affected. The company says the impact of LNG production shutdowns in Qatar on its LNG trading activities is limited, as most Qatari LNG is marketed by QatarEnergy. Meanwhile Shell has declared force majeure on LNG cargoes it buys from QatarEnergy and sells to its clients worldwide, following QatarEnergy’s halting of LNG production and declaration of force majeure on LNG shipments.