Drone strike halts oil production at Sarsang field in Iraqi Kurdistan

Oil production at the Sarsang oil field in Iraqi Kurdistan was suspended after a drone strike caused a fire at the facility, according to security sources and a petroleum engineer.

Reuters reported that the attack took place on Thursday, March 5, and targeted a field operated by the US oil company HKN Energy.

The Sarsang field produces roughly 30,000 barrels of oil per day. The project is developed by HKN Energy, which holds a 62% stake. The company is a private US oil and gas firm owned by Hillwood Energy, part of the Hillwood group founded by Ross Perot Jr.

According to an engineer working at the site, production was halted as a precaution after an explosion struck a power unit following the drone attack.

The Kurdistan Regional Government confirmed that the strike had been carried out using two drones.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack. However, Kurdish authorities accused Iraqi militias linked to Iran of carrying it out.

If that assessment is correct, the incident would suggest that Iran-linked Iraqi militias — which have vowed to avenge the killing of Iran’s supreme leader — may be expanding their targets beyond US military bases in Iraqi Kurdistan to include energy infrastructure.

Amid rising regional tensions following US and Israeli strikes on neighboring Iran, some energy companies operating in Iraqi Kurdistan have also temporarily suspended oil and gas production at their fields as a precaution.

By Tamilla Hasanova