Qatar completes pre-conflict LNG deliveries as LNG flows through Hormuz remain stalled

Qatar has completed deliveries of all LNG cargoes that were in transit when the Middle East conflict began on Feb. 28, marking the end of pre-conflict shipping flows.

Qatar has completed deliveries of all LNG cargoes that were in transit when the Middle East conflict began on Feb. 28, marking the end of pre-conflict shipping flows.

Kpler data show the LNG tanker  Al Ghuwairiya delivered the final cargo — 115,110 t — to the 15.4 mtpa  South Hook LNG terminal in the UK on Apr. 10, after departing Qatar’s 77 mtpa Ras Laffan export complex on Feb. 16. The shipment marks the completion of all cargoes loaded prior to the outbreak of hostilities.

The 43 pre-conflict cargoes, loaded between Feb. 3 and Feb. 26, total about 2.68 mt of LNG and represent roughly 43% of the 6.21 mt Qatar loaded in February. Asia accounted for the majority of deliveries—or 31 cargoes— reflecting Qatar’s long-term contract commitments to the region, which took nearly 90% of its exports in 2025. Europe took the remaining 12 cargoes.

The completion of these deliveries effectively removes the last active pre-conflict LNG flow through the Strait of Hormuz, leaving Asian buyers increasingly exposed to replacement procurement needs amid constrained supply availability and elevated spot prices. Importers including Japan, India, South Korea, Taiwan, Bangladesh, Thailand and Singapore are expected to lean more heavily on spot cargoes and portfolio optimisation strategies to manage supply security risks.

LNG transit through the Strait of Hormuz has remained severely constrained since the conflict began on Feb. 28, with only one LNG carrier crossing on Apr. 2. The strait is a key route for LNG exports from Qatar and Abu Dhabi, which together accounted for about one fifth of global LNG supply in 2025.

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With the pre-conflict flows now cleared, no new LNG shipments are currently moving through the Strait of Hormuz despite a conditional 14-day US-Iran ceasefire announced on Apr. 7. It leaves 15 laden vessels in the Middle East Gulf awaiting clearance to exit, of which 14 are carrying Qatari LNG and one is carrying LNG from Abu Dhabi’s 5.8 mtpa Das Island LNG terminal. Market participants hope these shipments will be able to transit the Strait amid the current ceasefire, but do not expect them to return once they exit.

Over 40 ballast vessels are positioned in the Arabian Sea and near Sri Lanka waiting to enter the strait to load LNG at Qatar and Abu Dhabi.

However, uncertainty over transit conditions has deepened following US President Donald Trump’s threat to blockade the Strait of Hormuz after the collapse of negotiations with Iran. Trump warned on Apr. 12 on his Truth Social platform that US naval forces would “shortly” begin blocking vessels entering or leaving the strait, adding that transit would eventually return to an “all being allowed to go in, all being allowed to go out” basis. He also cited concerns over possible naval mines in the waterway.

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