Israel has reportedly launched its first-ever strike on Iran’s oil and gas sector, targeting the South Pars gas field — the world’s largest — in a move that significantly raises the stakes in the escalating Middle East conflict.According to Iran’s semi-official Tasnim news agency, the Saturday attack caused a fire at a processing facility tied to Phase 14 of South Pars, forcing a partial suspension of gas production. The hit disrupted 12 million cubic meters of daily output, the Iranian oil ministry confirmed, adding that the fire has since been extinguished.
Shared with Qatar — where it’s known as the North Field — South Pars lies offshore in Iran’s southern Bushehr province and provides the lion’s share of the country’s natural gas. Iran, the world’s third-largest gas producer after the US and Russia, generates about 275 billion cubic meters of gas annually, most of which is consumed domestically due to sanctions that limit exports.
The strike follows a wider Israeli offensive that began Friday, in which military officials claimed to have killed Iranian commanders and nuclear scientists in a bid to thwart Tehran’s alleged ambitions of building an atomic bomb. While the initial attacks spared Iran’s energy infrastructure, Saturday’s strike on South Pars marks a sharp escalation — one that has already jolted global markets.
Oil prices spiked by 9% on Friday ahead of the energy site attacks. Analysts say further hits on Iran’s oil or gas facilities could deepen instability and push prices even higher. “This is probably the most important attack on oil and gas infrastructure since Abqaiq,” Jorge Leon of Rystad Energy told Bloomberg, referencing the 2019 drone strike on a key Saudi facility.Iran’s South Pars infrastructure is vital not only for domestic energy but also for the production of condensate — a light oil-like liquid — that it primarily exports to China. Meanwhile, its Gulf neighbor Qatar, with the help of energy majors like ExxonMobil and Shell, uses the shared North Field to produce 77 million tonnes of liquefied natural gas (LNG), much of which is exported to Europe and Asia.A second fire was also reported at Iran’s Fajr Jam gas plant, which processes output from South Pars and other major fields. While an official cause has not been confirmed, Tasnim reported initial assessments pointing to hostile drone activity.“This is a significant escalation,” said Richard Bronze of Energy Aspects, speaking to Bloomberg. “We appear to be in an escalatory cycle,” he warned, noting that the strikes could spread to other key parts of Iran’s energy infrastructure.While the damage so far appears limited to Iran’s domestic gas supply, the broader risk to OPEC’s third-largest oil producer — and to energy shipping routes in the region — is mounting. As tensions rise, so do fears that the world’s energy lifelines may be drawn deeper into the crossfire.(With inputs from agencies)
