BAGHDAD: Several oilfields in Iraq’s Kurdistan semi-autonomous region halted production as field infrastructure was significantly damaged, according to the regional government, following a third day of drone attacks on Wednesday.
It was not certain who had carried out the attacks and no group has claimed responsibility for them.
Gulf Keystone Petroleum said it had shut production at Shaikan field, one of the largest oil discoveries in the Iraq’s Kurdistan region, due to attacks in the field’s vicinity.
“As a safety precaution, GKP has decided to temporarily shut-in production and has taken measures to protect staff. The company’s assets have not been impacted,” the company said in a statement. Gulf Keystone has a production sharing contract with Iraq’s Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) with an 80 percent working interest in the license of Shaikan, located around 60 kilometers (37 miles) to the northwest of capital Irbil.
“A number of terrorist attacks were carried out by a bomb-dropping drone on the oil fields of Tawke, Peshkabour, and Ain Sifni in the independent administration of Zakho and the district of Shekhan in Duhok province,” KRG’s ministry of natural resources said.
The attacks aimed to harm the economic infrastructure of the Kurdistan region and threaten the safety of civilian workers in the energy sector, the ministry said.
Norwegian oil and gas firm DNO, which operates the Tawke and Peshkabir oilfields in the Zakho area that borders Turkiye, said it temporarily suspended production at the fields following explosions that caused no injuries.
“The damage assessment is underway and the company expects to restart production once the assessment is completed,” DNO said. DNO’s shares fell around 5 percent after the attack and were poised to see their worst day since June 25.
The fields were attacked by three bomb-laden drones, but there were no casualties, only material damage, Kurdistan’s counter-terrorism service posted on Facebook.
The Ain Sifni oilfield, operated by US-based Hunt Oil, was also attacked later in the Dohuk region of northern Iraq.
There were no further details on the attack. On Tuesday, a drone attack halted production at the Sarsang oilfield in Iraq’s Kurdistan region hours before its US operator signed a deal with Iraq to develop another field.
Iraqi Kurdistan security sources said initial investigations suggested the drone came from areas under the control of Iran-backed militias. On Monday, two drones fell on the Khurmala oilfield near Irbil in Iraqi Kurdistan, damaging water pipes at the field.
