Drone strike suspends gas output at Khor Mor field
A Sunday night attack on the facility cut power to 70 percent of the Kurdish region, prompting the prime minister to order a joint investigation.
By Adrian Kovalenko ·
Northern Iraq has relied on the Khor Mor gasfield to supply electricity to its major cities since the facility came online in the early 2000s. On Sunday night, a drone attack halted production at the site in the Sulaimaniyah governorate, leaving the semi-autonomous region largely without power.
Omid Ahmed, spokesperson for the Kurdistan Regional Government’s Ministry of Electricity, stated that the strike suspended gas supply to power plants in Erbil, Sulaimaniyah, Bazian, Chamchamal, and Duhok. Ahmed reported that the incident knocked between 2,500 and 2,800 megawatts of generation off the grid. The ministry plans to keep hospitals and water treatment plants running by activating hydroelectric stations and plants that use alternative fuels.
Security sources told Al Jazeera correspondent Peter Smith that an explosive-laden drone struck the gas storage facility. The damage reduced the energy grid’s capacity by 70 to 80 percent. Al Jazeera’s fact-checking agency Sanad verified video footage showing smoke and flames rising from the area.
Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi announced there were no casualties based on an initial assessment. He directed the formation of a joint investigative committee with Kurdish authorities to determine the circumstances of the attack. It remained unclear who was responsible or if the strike was connected to the United States and Israel’s war on Iran.
The Khor Mor facility has faced threats before. A drone hit the same site last year, and no group claimed responsibility for that incident either. The current disruption comes as regional tensions remain high.
