Qatar's LNG Exports Collapse 96%, Erasing $24 Billion in Gas Revenue

Qatar has lost an estimated $24 billion in gas revenue after six months of war brought its liquefied natural gas trade through the Strait of Hormuz close to a halt, cutting exports by 96%.

The loss is equivalent to about five months of income for the country based on 2025 data, according to Reuters calculations, making Qatar one of the biggest economic casualties of the U.S.-Iran conflict.

LNG Cargoes Nearly Disappear

Qatar’s dependence on LNG exports has left it especially exposed to disruptions to traffic through Hormuz.

State-owned QatarEnergy normally generates substantial export revenue from LNG, but shipments have collapsed since the war began in late February.

Only 18 Qatari LNG cargoes have left the Gulf during the period, compared with 509 in the same stretch a year earlier, according to data intelligence firm ICIS.

Two Qatari tankers have also been attacked.

Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Iraq and Kuwait have suffered disruption to oil exports, but none has recorded a decline on the scale seen in Qatar’s LNG trade.

U.S. Exporters Fill Part of the Gap

Before the war, Qatar supplied roughly one-fifth of global daily LNG volumes.

The collapse in Qatari shipments has opened space for U.S. exporters, which have increased deliveries to Asia as supplies normally sourced from Qatar remain trapped behind the Hormuz disruption.

American LNG producers have signed 10 deals totaling 7.27 million tonnes a year since the war began.

Venture Global accounted for six of those agreements, with five scheduled to begin deliveries in 2026.

Total U.S. LNG exports have also risen from a year earlier as new export terminals have entered operation.

Europe Faces Tightening Gas Market

The additional U.S. supply has only partly compensated for the loss of Qatari LNG.

European gas storage has fallen to its lowest level for this point of the year since at least 2011, following a weak summer refill season constrained by higher prices and tight global LNG availability.

The depleted inventories leave Europe more exposed to sharp price increases if the continent experiences a cold winter.

For Qatar, however, the immediate cost is already clear: a 96% collapse in LNG exports and $24 billion in foregone gas sales in six months.