The Middle East conflict is on the cusp of reaching the one-month milestone, and a meaningful peace agreement appears as elusive as ever (MEES, 26 March). Iran has all but locked down the Strait of Hormuz, cutting off Middle Eastern producers from global markets and forcing approximately 10mn b/d of production shut-ins.
Including Oman – which lies outside Hormuz but is at risk of Iranian attacks – more than 20mn b/d of crude oil and refined products was being exported from Gulf states prior to the conflict, and that figure has since dropped to barely 10mn b/d, Kpler data shows. Iran is exporting around 2mn b/d of crude and refined products, and most of the remaining volumes are being exported from three Hormuz-bypass pipelines operated by Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Iraq, alongside continued Omani flows. (CONTINUED - 1061 WORDS)
