Energy experts state that high oil and gasoline prices and supply issues will not be resolved immediately following the Sunday announcement of an agreement to end the Iran war and reopen the Strait of Hormuz. Analysts suggest it will likely take months before energy companies can resume operations sufficiently to meet global demand due to the slow pace of shipping and refining, as well as ongoing concerns regarding the security of the waterway. The Strait of Hormuz typically carries about one-fifth of the world’s oil and gasoline supplies. Before the war began, ships loaded with crude oil had been stranded in the Persian Gulf for more than three months because they could not safely navigate the strait. Daniel Evans of S&P Global Energy noted that the process will require time for people to feel comfortable, for insurance to be established, and for personnel to reach the ground to restart assets. Evans explained that stranded ships must first exit the strait before new tankers can enter, noting that tankers move slowly and require significant time to travel to refineries and final destinations. Production challenges also persist because some Middle Eastern producers paused extraction, or “shut-in,” after running out of storage space. Alan Gelder of Wood Mackenzie stated that countries with alternate pipelines, such as Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, may resume production quickly. However, he indicated that Iraq could face greater challenges because its fields are more difficult and experienced a larger shut-in, potentially taking about a year to return to normal. Also, Gelder noted that investment in the energy system, which can take years to yield results, ground to a halt during the strait’s closure. Daniel Sternoff of the Center on Global Energy Policy at Columbia University stated that countries that shut in production will likely wait until they are certain of a stable, durable strait and a ceasefire lasting at least 30 to 60 days. Sternoff added that there is currently uncertainty regarding what “open” means and the speed at which trapped material will be evacuated.