DOHA/SINGAPORE (Reuters) – QatarEnergy, the world’s second-largest exporter of liquefied natural gas (LNG), has stopped sending tankers via the Red Sea, a senior source with direct knowledge of the matter told Reuters on Monday, adding that production nevertheless continued.
At least four Qatari LNG carrier ships were detained over the weekend after US and British forces carried out dozens of air and sea strikes on Houthi targets in Yemen.
The strikes come as Houthi rebels, allied with Iran and controlling most of Yemen, have been disrupting global trade for several weeks by attacking ships transiting the Red Sea, in response, they say, to the war being waged. by Israel in Gaza.
“This is a break for security advice. If the passage (through) the Red Sea remains dangerous, we will pass through the Cape (of Good Hope),” the source said.
“This is not a halt in production,” she added.
The Qatari government’s International Media Office and QatarEnergy did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Qatar’s alternative route to Europe via the Cape of Good Hope could extend the journey by around 9 days from the original 18-day journey, according to Alex Froley, an analyst at ICIS LNG.
“We consider that this will have a minor impact: Qatar will simply take the long route via the Cape of Good Hope, which will cause delivery delays but nothing dramatic for European balances,” a source said on Monday. commercial.
The owners and managers of the four vessels, including Teekay Shipping Glasgow, Pronav Ship Management, Nakilat Shipping Qatar Ltd and STASCO, the shipping and chartering arm of Shell, also did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
(Reporting Emily Chow, Florence Tan and Cassandra Yap in Singapore, Maha El Dahan in Davos and Andrew Mills in Doha; with contributions from Marwa Rashad in London and Nora Buli in Oslo; French version Gaëlle Sheehan, edited by Blandine Hénault)
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