Geopolitics › Global issues & flashpoints › Energy: oil, gas and LNG
Strait of Hormuz
~20% of world oil; restricted by Iran 2026· Resource or chokepoint
FactTreaties, membership, measured data, events.
The narrow strait between Iran and Oman, the only sea exit from the Persian Gulf, through which about a fifth of world oil passes.
See it on the Geopolitics map →The picture
About 39 km (21 nautical miles) wide at its narrowest, it has inbound and outbound shipping lanes only about 3 km wide each. In 2024 roughly 20 million barrels of oil a day passed, plus about a fifth of world LNG trade, mostly from Qatar; about 84% of that crude went to Asia. Saudi and Emirati pipelines can reroute only about 2.6 million barrels a day. Iran restricted passage when war began on February 28, 2026; as of October 2026, no settlement guarantees free transit.
Why it matters
No other route can replace it, so any threat here moves oil and gas prices worldwide; the 2026 restrictions caused one of the sharpest monthly jumps in crude prices on record.
Think of it like
Like the only driveway into a large industrial park: block it and every tenant behind it stops shipping.
Key facts and numbers
US Energy Information Administration flow estimates, ship-tracking data from firms such as Kpler and Vortexa, insurers' war-risk notices, and nautical charts.
What to watch
How long Iran can restrict traffic against US naval power, and whether Gulf states and importers build enough bypass pipelines and stockpiles to blunt future threats.
Inside this (1)
Connections (5)
▸Mojtaba Khamenei vowed to keep closed Strait of HormuzFact
The relationship
In his first message as supreme leader, read on state television on March 12, 2026, Mojtaba Khamenei said the Strait of Hormuz would stay closed as 'a tool of pressure', demanded compensation for the attacks, and warned that US bases in the region would be attacked.
Since when and why
Iranian state TV, March 12, 2026; a presenter read the statement because he did not appear in person.
How we know
The broadcast text, reported by NPR, AP and others; Iran's later restrictions on ship traffic matched the pledge.
What to watch
Whether the hard line is his or the Guards'; later Iranian offers to reopen the strait if conditions are met suggest it is a bargaining chip.
▸US–Israel war with Iran (2026) choked shipping through Strait of HormuzFact
The relationship
Iran answered the war by blocking ships without its approval and attacking vessels in the Strait of Hormuz, through which about a fifth of world oil passes. Insurers pulled cover and tanker traffic collapsed; Brent crude rose from about $72 to nearly $120. A June deal to reopen it collapsed in July.
Since when and why
From early March 2026; Iranian attacks on ships off Oman on July 6–8 ended the June memorandum, and US and Iranian forces traded strikes there in September.
How we know
Ship-tracking data, insurers' war-risk notices, USNI and maritime-industry reporting, and benchmark oil prices.
What to watch
Whether Iran can keep controlling routes or charging fees, which most states reject under the law of the sea, and whether September's rebound in Gulf exports lasts.
▸Qatar ships all its LNG through Strait of HormuzFact
The relationship
Qatar's Ras Laffan, the world's largest LNG export hub, sits inside the Gulf, so every cargo must sail through Hormuz; there is no pipeline alternative for liquefied gas. When Iran restricted the strait and Iranian drones struck Qatari gas facilities in March 2026, about a fifth of world LNG supply went offline.
Since when and why
Ras Laffan Industrial City, northern Qatar; disruption from March 2026, with QatarEnergy reporting about 17% of export capacity damaged.
How we know
QatarEnergy statements, LNG ship-tracking data, and the geography itself: the Gulf's only sea exit is Hormuz.
What to watch
How soon Qatar restores full output, and whether its North Field expansion, meant to raise capacity about 85% by 2030, stays on schedule.
▸Strait of Hormuz is bordered by IranFact
The relationship
Iran's coast forms the strait's entire northern shore, with Oman's Musandam peninsula to the south. That geography, plus islands, mines, missiles and the Revolutionary Guards' fast attack boats, lets Tehran threaten the route; in 2026 it did, choking oil and LNG traffic.
Since when and why
Strait of Hormuz; Iran's 1971 takeover of Abu Musa and the Tunbs (claimed by the UAE), the 1980s 'Tanker War', tanker seizures in 2019 and 2023, and the 2026 closure.
How we know
Maritime charts, the UN Law of the Sea transit rules, shipping data and Iranian statements claiming control over passage in 2026.
What to watch
How long Iran could keep the strait closed against US naval power, and whether pipelines can bypass it at scale, are debated.
▸Strait of Hormuz is the most critical of Maritime chokepointsFact
The relationship
Malacca carries more oil, but Hormuz has the fewest alternatives: Gulf exporters can bypass it only partly by pipeline, and Qatar's LNG not at all. The US Energy Information Administration calls it the world's most important oil chokepoint, and the 2026 disruption showed why.
Since when and why
Between Iran and Oman's Musandam peninsula; EIA chokepoint analyses rank it first in importance, ahead of Malacca, Suez and Bab el-Mandeb.
How we know
EIA flow data and pipeline-capacity figures, and the 2026 price spike, the market's own verdict on its importance.
What to watch
Debated: whether Malacca, which carries more oil, or Taiwan's waters, which carry more containers, would matter more in a US–China crisis.