Says the Ministry of Natural Resources
‘Khor Mor gas cannot be sold to any party without KRG’s consent’
NEWSROOM – The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG)’s Ministry of Natural Resources announced on Wednesday that natural gas from the Khor Mor field cannot be sold without the KRG’s approval.
“Gas production from the Khor Mor field, under the agreement with Pearl Petroleum (Dana Gas), is designated for the electricity sector. Therefore, any gas produced cannot be sold to any party without the KRG’s consent,” said the ministry in a statement obtained by 964media.
The Khor Mor gas field, located between Kirkuk and Sulaymaniyah, is in a region under the defacto control of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK).
The ministry’s statement follows a meeting of the Iraqi Council of Ministers, chaired by Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani, where approval was expressed for purchasing gas from Khor Mor for the Kirkuk gas power plant.
On March 28, Ahmad Musa, spokesperson for the Iraqi Ministry of Electricity, stated, “The Iraqi government intends to utilize gas from the Khor Mor field. By God’s grace, we aim to benefit from the gas this summer or purchase gas from the field.”
He added that the priority is to meet the internal gas needs of the Kurdistan Region and that any excess gas would be considered for purchase by the Iraqi Ministry of Electricity.
It remains unclear who on the Kurdish side would negotiate with the Iraqi government regarding the sale of Khor Mor gas. Tensions have persisted between the PUK and the KRG, dominated by the rival Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP), over the control and export of Khor Mor gas. In 2022, PUK President Bafel Talabani stated in a meeting with foreign diplomatic missions that he would not allow Khor Mor gas to be exported if the process was not transparent.
Established in 2007, the Khor Mor gas plant is a critical production site operated by UAE-based Dana Gas. It generates 4,200 megawatts of electricity daily, with 2,800 megawatts serving the Kurdistan Region and 1,400 megawatts distributed to neighboring Kirkuk and Mosul provinces.
Khor Mor has faced significant security threats this year. In January, two Katyusha rockets targeted the gas field, causing a blaze but no casualties. In January, two Katyushas targeted the gas field, causing a blaze but no casualties. Suspicions have been raised for the attacks on Iran-backed military groups within the Iraqi Popular Mobilization Forces. At the time, Kurdish security forces launched a rocket attack on the bases of a Shia armed faction in Kirkuk with ties to Iran.
Additionally, Iran has targeted the residences of prominent Kurdish businesspeople involved in the energy sector with missile attacks, claiming to target Israeli intelligence position, a claim denied by Kurdish authorities. In late April, a suicide drone attack struck the Khor Mor gas field, killing four foreign workers.
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