The war for control of Middle Eastern energy infrastructure escalated sharply on September 8 as Iran warned it would strike US oil and gas assets in the Gulf if Washington attacked its own energy facilities, while Iran-backed Houthi militants launched simultaneous attacks on Saudi Aramco installations across southern Saudi Arabia. Brent crude surged to $98.63 a barrel — its highest level since July 24 — after peaking at $99.46 intraday, underscoring how quickly the conflict has tightened global oil supply and raised the prospect of a prolonged disruption to the Strait of Hormuz.
The Houthi attacks targeted energy facilities in Jazan, Abha, Najran and Khamis Mushait on September 8, causing fires and forcing Saudi Arabia's Energy Ministry to temporarily suspend operations at several sites, the ministry said in a statement. Seventy-three civilians were wounded, according to the Saudi Press Agency. Iran's parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf warned that Tehran would retaliate against US energy infrastructure in the region if American forces struck Iranian oil and gas assets again. "It's simple: the oil and gas production chain here is sprawling, accessible and exposed. American oil and gas companies across these waters and facilities share that exposure," Ghalibaf said in a statement reported by AGBI. The remarks came two days after US forces struck three Iranian oil tankers in the strait in retaliation for IRGC Navy attacks on commercial vessels.
The escalation compounds the supply crisis already triggered by the US naval blockade and secondary sanctions that have cut Iran's crude exports by roughly 85 percent since mid-July, from approximately 1.7 million barrels per day to 260,000 barrels per day in early September, according to Kpler tanker-tracking data cited by Reuters. The blockade has now effectively merged with a wider military confrontation across the Gulf. Goldman Sachs raised its Brent and WTI crude price forecasts by $5 a barrel for December 2026, setting new targets of $85 and $80 respectively, the bank said in a research note reported by Reuters. More significantly, the bank flagged an upside scenario in which Brent could exceed $120 a barrel if Gulf crude production remains 4 million barrels per day below pre-war levels into 2027 — a scenario that is moving closer to reality as both sides escalate.
