Khor Mor gas field attack halts output and cuts Kurdistan power: what we know

Gas production at the Khor Mor field in Iraq's Kurdistan Region stopped late on Sunday 8 November 2026 after an attack set part of the facility on fire, regional officials said. The shutdown cut gas to power stations and removed about 2,800 megawatts (MW) of generating capacity from the region's grid, according to the Kurdistan Regional Government's electricity ministry. No casualties were reported in initial assessments, and no group has claimed responsibility.

Iraq's prime minister, Ali al-Zaidi, ordered a joint investigation with Kurdish authorities, his office said early on Monday, according to 964media.

What happened at Khor Mor?

The Kurdistan Regional Government's ministries of natural resources and electricity said in a joint statement that the field "came under a terrorist attack" at 11:00 pm local time (20:00 GMT), as quoted by AFP. A Kurdish security source told AFP that an "explosive-laden drone" hit the field, and two sources in the regional electricity ministry told Reuters that a single drone strike hit a liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) storage tank, causing a fire.

Accounts of exactly what was hit differ slightly. Kurdistan24's correspondent reported that the strike hit the facility's "Old Field" section, which handles daily LPG production, and said that section had not been targeted before. A source quoted by 964media said the attack hit the LPG loading section, which loads about 1,500 tonnes a day, while another described the target as a production section known as Ka1. A second 964media source said debris suggested a drone, but that it was not yet certain whether a drone or rocket was used.

An alarm sounded before the impact and workers moved to shelters, according to Kurdistan24 and 964media. Prime Minister al-Zaidi said the attack caused no casualties, based on an initial assessment, Reuters reported.

LPG is the bottled gas many households in Iraq use for cooking and heating. Khor Mor also supplies natural gas by pipeline to power stations.

How much electricity has been lost, and who is affected?

The regional electricity ministry gave a figure of about 2,800 MW, or 2.8 gigawatts, of lost generation, Reuters and 964media reported. 964media reported power cuts in parts of Erbil, Duhok and Zakho. Al Jazeera reported on Monday that more than 70% of the Kurdistan Region was without power; The Daily Context has not independently confirmed that figure.

Omed Ahmed, the electricity ministry spokesperson, told 964media the ministry was trying to avoid a full blackout. It would cut power first to places that need it least, with households affected only as a last resort. He said the ministry was turning to the Dukan and Darbandikhan hydropower dams and to plants that can run on other fuels, to keep hospitals, water stations and other critical sites supplied. He told Kurdistan24 that restoring normal supply would depend on gas production restarting at Khor Mor.

According to 964media, the regional ministries said in July, during an earlier shutdown, that household cooking-gas supplies would continue because the federal oil ministry had agreed to meet the region's daily demand. Officials have not said whether the same arrangement applies now.

Why is Khor Mor so important?

Khor Mor is in the Qadir Karam subdistrict of Chamchamal, in Sulaymaniyah governorate. It is run by the Pearl Petroleum consortium, led by the UAE-based companies Dana Gas and Crescent Petroleum. According to 964media, the field produces about 750 million cubic feet of natural gas a day, and its operators say it fuels more than 80% of the Kurdistan Region's electricity generation.

That dependence on one site is why attacks on it cause widespread power cuts. The attack came about a week after the scheduled end of the field's annual month-long maintenance, which 964media said was set for 2 October to 2 November.