Khor Mor attacks threaten Iraq’s energy investment, US expert says
Shafaq News – Washington
Foreign energy companies may eventually be forced to reconsider their presence in Iraq if attacks such as the recent strike on the Khor Mor gas field—operated by UAE-based Dana Gas—continue, US energy-security expert Paul Sullivan warned on Thursday.
A drone attack on the Khor Mor field in Al-Sulaymaniyah halted gas supplies and caused an 80% drop in electricity production across the Kurdistan Region on Wednesday.
Speaking to Shafaq News, Sullivan noted that international oil and gas firms generally operate with a “fairly high tolerance for risk,” but affirmed that this tolerance is limited.
“If it gets too high compared to what they get out of an investment, they may rethink,” he said, adding that any reassessment depends on the contracts the energy company and its contractors have signed with the government and others.
Sullivan described force majeure as a potential—but still distant—option in extreme circumstances. “It is one way out of the contract… Usually, force majeure occurs when a situation makes further investment and work impossible. I don’t think we are there yet in northern Iraq.”
Regarding Washington’s role, Sullivan said “the Administration may put pressure on Baghdad to protect the fields and infrastructure,” though he cautioned that “sometimes this administration is unpredictable.”
For Shafaq News, Mostafa Hashem, Washington, D.C.
