At 11pm on Sunday, the Khor Mor gas field in Iraq’s Kurdistan Region was struck by an explosive-laden drone,
halting production and cutting electricity generation across the region by 80 percent, according to regional authorities.
The strike hit the field’s gas storage unit in the Chamchamal district of Sulaymaniyah province, causing a massive fire and forcing the suspension of operations. Omed Ahmed, the regional electricity authority spokesman, confirmed that the attack halted gas supplies to power plants that serve major urban centers, including Erbil, Sulaimaniyah, and Duhok.
As reported by Al Jazeera, the abrupt closure of the Khor Mor field terminated the fuel supply for essential power stations that provide electricity to five primary urban areas: Erbil, Sulaimaniyah, Bazian, Chamchamal, and Duhok. The strike slashed electricity generation across the national grid by approximately 2.8 gigawatts, reducing regional electricity production down to 1,000 megawatts from 4,000 megawatts.
To mitigate a total grid collapse, the Ministry of Electricity has diverted resources to keep essential services running. To prevent a complete blackout, the Ministry of Electricity is working, through the operation of hydroelectric power stations at the Dokan and Darbandikhan dams and stations that can be operated with other fuels, to provide electricity to sensitive and important sites such as hospitals and water stations,
Ahmed said.
Initial assessments by Kurdish security sources indicated that the drone hit the facility’s warehouse unit, which contained 170 oil tankers holding nearly 1.5 thousand tons of cooking gas.
A drone attack targeted the Khor Mor natural gas field in the Chamchamal area, west of Sulaimani, tonight, striking an LPG storage facility. LPG is separate from the natural gas used for electricity generation, but all production has reportedly been suspended due to its highly… https://t.co/mMuUQR1FOm pic.twitter.com/0tClN29LS6
The Security Media Cell announced that Prime Minister al-Zaidi has ordered a joint investigation with Kurdish regional authorities into the incident.
A joint statement issued by the region’s natural resources and electricity ministries described the incident as a terrorist attack
and noted that authorities were taking all necessary measures to reduce its impact on the regional power grid. The facility ranks as one of the largest gas fields in northern Iraq and supplies most of Kurdistan’s power stations.
Following the strike, the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) presidency underlined the necessity of relying on dialogue, peaceful solutions, and diplomacy to address disputes and challenges,
while reviewing cross-border security mechanisms and existing security agreements signed between Iran, Iraq, and the Kurdish regional authorities.
The Kurdistan region has been the recurring target of rocket and drone attacks for years, primarily focusing on its oil infrastructure, with regional officials often pointing to Iran-supported Iraqi militias as the culprits.
The United States has consistently urged Iraq to neutralize these Iran-backed factions, and Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi has promised to guarantee that these armed groups surrender their armaments to the government. Zaidi also canceled contracts at Mosul airport because of them being linked to armed groups.
The facility has faced multiple security threats throughout recent years, including an August 2023 strike, a February 2025 strike, a December 2025 attack, and a November 2025 strike that similarly slashed electricity production and reduced the Kurdistan Region’s electricity generation by 80 percent for several days. In July, Dana Gas suspended operations at the field for about 10 days after receiving security threats, resuming production once risks subsided.
Abu Mujahid al-Assaf of Kataib Hezbollah has previously targeted facilities in Iraq and Saudi Arabia and has been in the spotlight amid attempts to disarm armed groups.
As of late Sunday, no group has formally claimed responsibility for the drone strike.
nearly 2.8 gw of power output lost from grid after attack on iraq's Khor Mor field: Kurdistan region's electricity ministry
