LNG

Transits of crude oil and LNG tankers through the Strait of Hormuz have slowed sharply over the weekend as shipowners and operators reacted to latest attacks on tankers and stalled U.S.-Iran talks.

Optionality, not just molecules, is what LNG buyers are scrambling for as spare capacity shrinks and shipments from Qatar remain constraint. As sources for ‘safe’ supply become finite, each new shipping disruption has a greater impact on prices and procurement decisions, analysts warn.

High prices are causing a drop in seaborne coal imports to India, though LNG is no alternative due to supply constraints and record prices, leaving Indian utilities struggling to meet soaring electricity demand this summer.

Asia’s LNG imports are set to hit a six-month high in July, while Europe’s imports are expected to fall to their lowest level in nearly two years. Asia is projected to take 23.05 million metric tons of LNG this month, up from 22.60 million tons in June, while Europe is forecast at 6.56 million tons, down from 7.21 million tons in June, according to Reuters and Kpler data.

China’s LNG imports in June are expected to be broadly unchanged from a year earlier at around 5.29 million tonnes, according to Kpler data cited by Bloomberg. The forecast implies a month-on-month increase from May imports of 4.9 million tonnes, as demand strengthens ahead of peak summer cooling, driven by higher air-conditioning use.

A suspected drone strike on a merchant vessel near the Strait of Hormuz is testing a fragile U.S.–Iran framework agreement to restore shipping flows through one of the world’s most critical energy corridors, with implications for LNG trade.

Qatar is repositioning LNG carriers back into the Middle East Gulf as loadings resume and is understood to be seeking short-term charter coverage. Offtakers are counting on QatarEnergy’s promise to reinstate at least half of Ras Laffan production capacity within a month of safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz being restored.

Tightening LNG balances in Europe, amid maintenance across Norway’s pipeline network and lower imports, have made Kpler analysts “slightly bullish” on benchmark TTF gas prices, while restocking in China and stronger Asian demand underpin global LNG markets.

Abu Dhabi National Oil Co (ADNOC) has moved a second LNG carrier through the Strait of Hormuz, with tankers going off the radar when transiting the critical waterway as security risks persist. The two carriers loaded at Das Island terminal and appear to be heading to Japan and China.

“Apparently, there is a new game in town: empty LNG tankers moving near the Strait of Hormuz, going dark, loading LNG, crossing the Strait again and then reappearing in the middle of the ocean loaded,” commented Anne-Sophie Corbeau, Center on Global Energy Policy (CGEP) research scholar at Columbia University.

“The Qataris do not seem to be playing this game. Yet,” she noted.

Mraweh, one of ADNOC’s LNG carriers, officially did not transit Hormuz – but it reappeared laden near Indonesia and has now been tracked as heading towards Japan. Sohar, another LNG carrier, crossed the Strait in early April – empty.

Kpler data indicates the ADNOC-linked LNG carrier Mubaraz has transited the Strait on April 27 after a 30-day tracking blackout. This week, Mubaraz re-emerged off southern India – apparently en route to China’s Tianjin regas terminal where it is expected to arrive on May 15.

Though ADNOC has not officially confirmed that the cargo originates from Das Island, ship tracking data identifies it as one of the first loaded LNG crossing Hormuz since hostilities began, disrupting Persian Gulf exports that comprised 20% of global supply in 2025.

China has been reselling record volumes of LNG to other Asian buyers since the start of the Middle East war, diverting up to 10 cargoes in March alone – mainly to South Korea, Thailand and Japan. More re-exports are on the cards in April.