Image for representation purposes only At least four oil and liquefied natural gas (LNG) tankers turned back while trying to pass through the Strait of Hormuz after fresh attacks on commercial vessels raised security concerns in one of the world’s busiest energy shipping routes. The diversions came after a Qatari LNG tanker and a Saudi-flagged crude oil tanker were damaged near the strait on Tuesday following reports that Iran fired missiles at ships in the waterway. Maritime authorities later raised the threat level for vessels transiting the Strait of Hormuz to “severe”, leading some operators to change their routes. Ship-tracking data from Kpler and LSEG showed that three QatarEnergy-operated LNG carriers, Al Ghariya, Duhail and Al Ruwais, were sailing towards the Strait of Hormuz before changing course late on Tuesday. All three vessels were empty and heading to Qatar’s Ras Laffan export terminal to load LNG cargoes. The same data also showed that the Indian-flagged Very Large Crude Carrier (VLCC) Lila Vadinar, carrying around 2 million barrels of Kuwaiti crude loaded late last week, made a U-turn off the coast of Oman on Wednesday before entering the strait. Despite the disruption, cargo movements have continued. Since the conflict began in late February, at least 16 LNG cargoes have left Qatar’s Ras Laffan terminal, while another 10 cargoes have departed ADNOC’s Das Island terminal in the United Arab Emirates. However, this is still well below the combined monthly average of about 7 million metric tonnes usually shipped from the two export terminals. A queue of empty vessels waiting to load cargo has also grown outside Ras Laffan. According to Laura Page, Insight Manager for LNG and natural gas at Kpler, satellite images taken on July 7 showed 14 LNG tankers anchored offshore Ras Laffan. Only one vessel, Umm Al Amad, was loading cargo at the terminal when the images were captured. The images also showed three waiting vessels