Big Oil Is Cashing In on the Iran War While Its Gulf Assets Burn

Record Profits, Rising Danger

Six months into the war on Iran, the largest US oil companies have posted their biggest profits since 2022 — selling less oil at far higher prices. It sounds like a paradox, but it's the defining story of the global energy market right now. War has become a windfall. ExxonMobil and Chevron posted combined second-quarter earnings of more than $26.6 billion, buoyed by higher oil prices triggered by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, which disrupted global energy flows.

Since the war began on February 28, Brent crude has risen about 22 percent, from $72 to $88 a barrel. The Strait of Hormuz — through which one-fifth of the world's oil and natural gas was shipped before the war — remains largely closed to commercial traffic, though Iran and Oman agreed last week on a temporary maritime route. Iran says the strait will not fully reopen until the United States fulfills its commitments under a lapsed interim peace deal, leaving longer-term security and management arrangements unresolved. For everyday consumers, that uncertainty translates directly to what they pay at the pump.

A War Fought on the Energy Map

According to the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data (ACLED), Iran and Iran-backed groups have carried out at least 172 attacks on nonmilitary infrastructure across the six Gulf Cooperation Council countries since February 28. Energy infrastructure has been hit hardest, with oil and gas facilities, along with power plants and desalination plants, accounting for nearly half — 48 percent — of all strikes on nonmilitary targets. The UAE, Kuwait, and Bahrain have suffered the highest number of successful strikes, with the majority aimed at oil and gas facilities.

Among the sites struck are Kuwait's Mina Abdullah and Mina al-Ahmadi refineries, the Bahrain Petroleum Company oil refinery, and ADNOC's al-Ruwais Industrial City and the Habshan gas complex. There have also been several strikes on Saudi Aramco facilities, most recently a drone strike on July 27 on the Abqaiq processing complex, one of the most critical nodes in Saudi Arabia's oil infrastructure, processing more than seven million barrels of oil per day. These are not symbolic targets — they are the circulatory system of global energy supply.

ACLED's Middle East assistant research manager Nasser Khdour explained that "oil and gas facilities, power plants and water desalination plants are likely to remain key targets for Iran because disruption to these sectors can increase economic pressure on Gulf states, while disruption to global energy supplies increases prices and pressure on the US during periods of escalation." In short, energy infrastructure is being used as a weapon on both sides of the conflict.

Winners, Losers, and the Uneven Fallout

Not every American oil giant is benefiting equally. ExxonMobil has been far more exposed to disruption in the Middle East, with the closure of the Strait of Hormuz and Iranian attacks on US-linked infrastructure affecting its operations in Qatar and the UAE, which together account for 20 percent of its global equity upstream supply. The company's upstream earnings dropped by around $1.3 billion in the first half of 2026 compared to the same period in 2025, due to lower upstream volumes from the Middle East.

Rahul Choudhary, vice president of Upstream Research at Rystad Energy, said the conflict has already reduced the amount of oil and gas US energy firms are drawing from the Gulf region. "Overall we expect US companies' share of gas supplies from the region to fall by around 40 percent this year compared to last year, and the share of oil supplies to drop by 30–35 percent," he told Al Jazeera. A drone attack in March near the Saudi Aramco-ExxonMobil SAMREF refinery in Yanbu disrupted oil loading at the city's Red Sea port. While the attack had only minimal operational impact, it highlighted the vulnerability of US-linked energy assets in the region.

What Comes Next

Looking ahead, Choudhary said higher prices could support cash flows, but prolonged conflict risks could threaten future growth. ExxonMobil's $10 billion Upper Zakum and Qatar LNG expansions could face delays, while ConocoPhillips remains exposed through investments in higher-risk markets, including its planned 42-percent stake in BP's Kirkuk operations in Iraq.

In the absence of a lasting resolution, the disruption is likely to continue supporting higher energy prices and creating windfalls for producers, despite placing energy companies' regional assets and future projects at greater risk. The Iran war has rewritten the rules of the global oil market in just six months — and with the Strait of Hormuz's future still hanging on unresolved diplomacy, the energy world is bracing for more turbulence ahead.