Ships with Qatar LNG attempt first Hormuz exit since Iran war started

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Singapore – Two tankers carrying liquefied natural gas (LNG) from Qatar appear to be heading toward the Strait of Hormuz, and an exit from the Persian Gulf would mark the first export to buyers outside of the region since the war started.

The Al Daayen and Rasheeda, which each loaded LNG from Qatar’s export plant in late February, are moving eastward toward the opening of the strait near Oman, according to ship-tracking data. The vessels had been idling in the Gulf as the war escalated, and the Strait of Hormuz remained largely closed to shipping.

The Al Daayen is signalling China, the data shows, Qatar’s largest LNG buyer. Still, destinations are not final, and vessels may change their indicated port of call at any time. So far, no loaded LNG tanker has passed through the Strait of Hormuz since the US and Israel began strikes on Iran on Feb 28.

The effective closure of the key waterway near Iran and the Arabian Peninsula has choked off energy supplies to global markets, disrupting about a fifth of the world’s supply of LNG. A tanker, which appeared to not be carrying a shipment, passed through the strait over the weekend.

Qatar has delivered two LNG shipments to Kuwait over the past few weeks, according to ship-tracking data compiled by Kpler. These supplies were likely loaded from Qatar’s storage tanks and do not require traversing the strait.

Tracking vessel movements around the Persian Gulf can be an inexact science because of the potential for electronic interference with ship signals and the intentional disablement of transponders by pilots sailing through risky zones. Seapeak manages Al Daayen, and Nakilat owns Rasheeda, according to ship database Equasis. Neither company immediately responded to a request for comment.

The potential pass through the Strait of Hormuz may be a shot in the arm for Qatar, which supplied nearly a fifth of all LNG in 2025, even as the country’s Ras Laffan export plant has been shut for over a month due to Iranian attacks. This could allow Qatar to send more shipments that are already loaded and waiting within the Persian Gulf, or offload fuel from storage.

QatarEnergy, which operates Ras Laffan – the world’s largest LNG export plant – did not immediately respond to a request for comment. 

Iran has choked off transit through the waterway since US and Israeli strikes began, while allowing passage to its own ships or those it has approved. So far, no known Qatar-linked energy vessels have gone through the strait. In recent days, Tehran appears to have permitted the passage of vessels associated with countries seen as close to the US, including France and Japan. BLOOMBERG