The electrical dependence on Khor Mor explains the scale of the cuts in Iraqi Kurdistan after the shutdown of the gas site. The plant supplies several plants in different cities but from the same fuel source. Its extension, completed in October 2025, strengthened this capacity. It did not remove the risk of a common interruption.
According to the spokesperson of the regional electricity ministry, Omed Ahmed, the stop following the attack on 8 November deprives the network of 2,500 to 2,800 megawatts. It cites the Erbil, Suleimaniye, Bazian, Chamchamal and Dohuk power plants. Not all of these facilities must suffer damage in order to lose their capacity to produce: the disruption of their supply is sufficient.
Dana Gas confirmed on 9 November an alleged drone attack, an extinguished fire and the absence of casualties among the personnel. Production remains suspended during damage assessment. The company does not provide a recovery schedule. The information available does not establish the identity of the attacker.
Khor Mor, a concentrated electrical addiction
Released in 2008, Khor Mor is located near Chamchamal, in the province of Souleimaniye. The Pearl Petroleum consortium operates this project. Dana Gas and Crescent Petroleum are the main partners. Over the course of the investments, the field has become a central regional supply infrastructure.
In its 2025 annual report, Dana Gas states that Khor Mor gas supplies more than 85% of Iraqi Kurdistan’s electricity production. This percentage is a company data, reported in the period described. It is not an instant measure of the missing current after the November 2026 attack.
The distinction counts to understand the breakdown. A daily volume of gas measures a delivered fuel. A power, expressed in megawatts, describes the available or interrupted power capacity. The transition from one plant to another depends in particular on the power plants and their operation. Gas production and electrical power figures do not add up.
The range of 2,500 to 2,800 megawatts represents the initial estimate of the regional ministry. The figure of 2.8 gigawatts then corresponds to its high terminal. This is not a second loss, which would be added to the first.
Producing more without multiplying sources
The KM250 project increased the installed gas processing capacity to 750 million standard cubic feet per day. Dana Gas confirms this 50% increase in its November 6 results. This is a technical capacity, not proof that this volume is produced every day.
The extension increases the gas that the site can provide. But the concentration remains: a larger installation remains exposed to a local stop. The power stations served can be far from each other and yet share the same vulnerability.
The new capacity has also opened an outlet outside the autonomous region. Since August, the project has supplied the Taza power plant near Kirkuk with an agreement with the Federal Ministry of Electricity. The announced contract volume reaches 100 million standard cubic feet per day. This agreement extends Khor Mor’s commercial scope; It does not bring a second source to the gas of Kurdish power plants.
Domestic gas does not replace that of power plants
Another aspect of the emergency response is the supply of liquefied petroleum gas to households. The regional authorities requested assistance from Baghdad until the site was resumed. This measure concerns domestic needs, distinct from the power supply to large electrical installations.
Deliveries of cooking gas can therefore limit a consequence of closure without restoring lost megawatts. For the network, the decisive point remains the return to service of the fuel processing and delivery, or the availability of other means of production.
Chambhamal remains a project, not an immediate rescue
Dana Gas presents the development of the Chamchamal field as a next step in its growth. In its communication of 6 November, the company aims at a first gas production in early 2028. This announced schedule is neither a current delivery nor a solution available for this week’s cuts.
In Khor Mor, the teams still have to measure the damage. As long as this assessment does not lead to a recovery schedule, the electricity authorities do not have a confirmed public date for the return of this fuel.
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