Khor Mor Shutdown Costs Over $7.4 Million Daily, Report Suggests

ERBIL (Kurdistan24) – In a staggering revelation that underscores the severe economic toll of recent security breaches, the Eco Iraq Observatory has reported that the forced closure of the Khor Mor gas field following a devastating missile strike is costing the energy sector more than 7.41 million dollars every single day.

This financial hemorrhage, detailed in a comprehensive assessment released on Saturday, highlights the critical vulnerability of the Kurdistan Region’s infrastructure and the cascading economic effects of the assault that has already crippled power generation across the area.

On Saturday, the Eco Iraq Observatory published a detailed statement regarding the fiscal consequences of the attack, providing a grim analysis of the daily losses incurred by the suspension of operations.

According to the Observatory, the figure of 7.41 million dollars represents the loss in gas production alone, a number that reflects the massive scale of the facility's contribution to the regional economy. The report outlined the production metrics prior to the incident to illustrate the magnitude of the disruption.

Before the attack, the Khor Mor field was a powerhouse of energy output, producing 530 million cubic feet of natural gas daily. With the current market value estimated at approximately 10,000 dollars per one million cubic feet, the cessation of this flow represents the largest portion of the daily financial deficit.

Beyond the primary natural gas supply, the field was also a crucial source for byproducts essential to daily life and industry.

The statement from the Observatory indicated that the field’s daily output included 1,580 tons of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG), commonly recognized as household gas. With the price of each ton standing at 500 dollars, this loss is felt directly in the domestic market, potentially threatening supply chains for residential heating and cooking.

Furthermore, the field produced approximately 22,000 barrels of gas condensate daily, valued at 60 dollars per barrel, further compounding the revenue loss and removing a vital commodity from the market.

The Eco Iraq Observatory also shed light on the strategic difficulty and financial burden of replacing this lost energy. In its clarification, the body noted that Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG), which constitutes the primary fuel source for electricity production in the region, is prohibitively expensive to import and transport to Iraq or the Kurdistan Region.

This logistical and financial reality makes the domestic shutdown an even more acute economic crisis, as alternative sourcing would likely incur costs far exceeding the domestic production rates.

Crucially, the Observatory emphasized that the reported figure of 7.41 million dollars is a conservative estimate restricted solely to direct production losses.

The statement explicitly mentioned that this estimation does not include the losses related to the fees owed to producing companies, the operational costs of transmission lines, or the broader, unquantifiable economic impact resulting from the significant decrease in the rate of electricity production available to businesses and factories.

The current crisis was precipitated by a violent security breach that occurred at 11:30 PM on the night of Wednesday transitioning into Thursday. A targeted missile attack struck the liquefied gas storage facility of the Khor Mor field in the Chamchamal district, resulting in its complete destruction.

The physical damage had an immediate and catastrophic knock-on effect on the public grid, causing a plummet in the electricity supply of the Kurdistan Region by 1,500 megawatts, leaving millions to grapple with power shortages alongside the mounting financial costs.