As Iran Crisis Upends Oil and Gas, Clean Energy Gets Complicated
Higher fossil fuel prices could make green alternatives more attractive, but harder to deploy.
The USS Spruance fires a Tomahawk Land Attack Missile in support of Operation Epic Fury, in a photo released by the US Navy on Feb. 28.
Source: US Navy
The turmoil unfolding in the Middle East is sparking the biggest disruption to oil and natural gas markets since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Qatar shut down the world’s largest liquefied natural gas export facility, Saudi Arabia suspended operations at its biggest oil refinery and tanker traffic through the crucial Strait of Hormuz has all but halted.
And it’s only Day 3. US President Donald Trump has said he intends for the bombardment of Iran to continue for the next four to five weeks. The world currently has an oversupply of oil and gas, but a prolonged conflict would reshape energy markets.