Kuwait’s Mina Al-Ahmadi refinery hit by drone attack, fire breaks out

Firefighters battled a blaze at a giant oil refinery in Kuwait on Friday after a fresh drone attack as Iran kept up a wave of strikes on its neighbors.

Despite calls for an end to targeting Gulf energy infrastructure by European leaders on Thursday, Kuwait reported a fire at its Mina Al-Ahmadi refinery, a day after a direct hit on Qatar’s vital Ras Laffan facility.

Kuwait’s state oil firm KPC said the refinery was hit by multiple drone attacks, causing a fire in some units, with no initial casualties reported, the state news agency said.

Firefighters responded immediately, with several units shut down as a precaution to ensure workers’ safety.

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Iranian authorities had vowed to retaliate after an Israeli strike on Wednesday damaged its South Pars gas field, which draws on the world’s biggest known gas reserve and is vital for domestic supplies.

The escalating damage to Gulf infrastructure has spiked oil and gas prices again and led to fears of lasting damage to global supplies

Iran retains a stranglehold over the strategic Strait of Hormuz through which a fifth of global oil and Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) usually flows.

The United Arab Emirates also reported missile attacks, while Saudi Arabia intercepted more than a dozen drones early Friday as Gulf nations began the observation of Eid al-Fitr, the holiday that marks the end of the Islamic fasting month of Ramadan.

Escalation

Energy analysts and consumers were scrambling to count the cost of Iranian missiles hitting Qatar’s huge Ras Laffan natural gas complex on Thursday.

The attack caused “extensive damage” that Qatar’s state energy company said could cost $20 billion a year in lost revenue and take five years to repair.

That could lead to high energy prices that outlast the conflict, which would increase inflation and crimp consumer spending.

“Short disruptions create price volatility. Sustained damage creates lasting economic shock,” Robert Pape, a political science and military expert at the University of Chicago, wrote on his Substack.

“This is how a regional war becomes an historic global economic crisis.”

Read more:

Gulf states say responding to missile, drone attacks from Iran

Saudi, Kuwaiti leaders warn of escalation from Iranian attacks on Gulf