Global oil markets lurched toward $110 a barrel Wednesday as Iran threatened swift retaliation against Gulf energy facilities following an Israeli strike on its South Pars gasfield. The Revolutionary Guards named specific facilities in Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the UAE as imminent targets and told workers and residents to evacuate. The situation marked one of the most acute escalations in energy-sector warfare the region had ever seen.
South Pars holds the title of the world’s largest natural gas reserve and is shared between Iran and Qatar. Israeli strikes on the field, reportedly approved by Washington, broke a tacit understanding that had kept Iran’s oil and gas sector largely off-limits. That calculation now appeared to have changed, with significant implications for global energy prices and supply stability.
Iran’s state media broadcast a detailed list of threatened sites: the Samref refinery and Jubail petrochemical complex in Saudi Arabia, the al-Hosn gasfield in the UAE, and the Mesaieed complex and Ras Laffan refinery in Qatar. The evacuation warning was described as immediate and non-negotiable. Local officials in Iran’s Asaluyeh province framed the US-Israeli action as a reckless provocation that had triggered an inevitable response.
Brent crude jumped nearly 5% on the news, touching $108.60 a barrel. European natural gas prices climbed more than 7.5% to over €55.50 per megawatt hour. These price surges came on top of a war-driven collapse in Gulf oil exports, which had already fallen 60% below pre-conflict levels. Iran’s chokehold on the Strait of Hormuz had made it almost impossible for neighboring states to move their crude to global markets.
Qatar’s government spokesperson cautioned that striking energy infrastructure would have far-reaching consequences for global energy security and regional populations. The warning underscored how deeply interconnected the Gulf’s energy systems were — and how an attack on one facility could send economic tremors across the entire world. Analysts watching the situation said the coming hours would be critical.