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European gas prices fell more than 1% on Thursday after the first Qatari liquefied natural gas (LNG) tanker in more than three weeks passed through the Strait of Hormuz, signaling a possible restart of exports that had been disrupted by the conflict between Iran and the U.S.
The LNG carrier Al Areesh, loaded earlier this month at Qatar's Ras Laffan export terminal, entered the Gulf of Oman on Thursday morning and is heading to Pakistan, according to shipping data from MarineTraffic.
The August gas contract dropped below €60 ($68.7), trading at €59.8 per megawatt-hour as of 6:00 a.m. GMT.
The transit suggests QatarEnergy is gradually restoring LNG exports through the Strait of Hormuz after suspending voyages when the Al Rekayyat gas carrier was struck on July 7.
Bloomberg reported that the improved security outlook could also allow the state-owned producer to restart plans to increase LNG output at its Ras Laffan complex, the world's largest LNG export facility.
QatarEnergy declared force majeure on its LNG shipments in March after Iran closed the Strait of Hormuz to commercial shipping, disrupting exports through a waterway that carries about one-fifth of global oil and gas supplies from Gulf producers.
The state-owned company has since extended the measure several times as shipping disruptions persisted.
To ease supply disruptions during the conflict, QatarEnergy bought 33 spot LNG cargoes from the United States this year for delivery to South Korea, Taiwan, Bangladesh, India and Japan, industry sources told Reuters.
The emergency purchases were equivalent to about one-third of QatarEnergy's monthly LNG exports before the conflict and were worth roughly $1 billion, according to Reuters calculations.
Despite the decline in European gas prices, oil moved higher by more than 1%, with Brent crude rising to $92.2 per barrel while U.S. benchmark WTI traded at $85.1.
The gains came after U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) announced late Wednesday that American forces carried out what it described as a "heavy wave" of strikes targeting dozens of Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) sites across southern Iran.
CENTCOM linked the operation to what it called an attempted surprise attack by the IRGC on U.S. bases in the Middle East. Iranian media reported that three members of a family, including a child, were killed and two others were injured.
Separately, the IRGC claimed that two oil tankers attempted to pass through the Strait of Hormuz via an unauthorized southern route after being encouraged by U.S. aircraft. According to a statement carried by Iranian media, a major fire broke out aboard one of the vessels, prompting both tankers to turn back.
The statement did not identify the cause of the fire but alleged the vessels had attempted the crossing following U.S. "provocation."
"The Strait of Hormuz is our territory, and the brave sailors of the IRGC Navy firmly control it. No outsider that has come from thousands of kilometers away will be allowed to interfere," the IRGC said, warning that countries assisting "the aggressor" would face "a harsh response" unless they changed their behavior.
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