ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The UAE-based Dana Gas plans to double its natural gas production in the Kurdistan Region in the future, the company’s managing director told Rudaw on Wednesday. It produces 500 million standard cubic feet of gas per day in the Region despite attacks on its field. “We have invested billions of dollars since we signed our contracts with the Kurdistan Regional Government in 2007. We started producing one year after that, in 2008, at 80 million cubic feet. We are now producing 500 million cubic feet per day as well as LPG and Condensate. And we are looking at another 250 million cubic feet hopefully by next year,” Majid Jafar, CEO of Crescent Petroleum and Managing Director of its affiliate Dana Gas, told Rudaw on Wednesday. “And we can then increase more than that, beyond that to get to one billion cubic feet per day. We want to achieve and we can achieve, as we are working [and] partnering with the KRG, 24 hours of electricity. We know that is a very important social and economic objective,” he added. The Kurdistan Region has been facing an unprecedented number of rocket and drone attacks since the beginning of this year, mostly blamed on Iran-backed militias. Khor Mor gas field in Chamchamal, run by Dana Gas, has been targeted with rockets and explosive-laden drones several times, with the latest one being on October 12. The attacks have not affected gas production. Kurdistan Region Prime Minister Masrour Barzani said in June that he was troubled by the attacks on Khor Mor, noting that additional security forces will be deployed to the area. Jafar described the attacks as “unfortunate,” adding that these attacks do not only target the Kurdistan Region but the whole country. “These attacks are on Iraq’s interests because what we are doing is enabling affordable and cleaner electricity for Iraqi citizens - not only in the Kurdistan Region but also all of Iraq. And this is what keeps us focused on achieving for Iraq to get benefit of these energy resources,” he said. Dana Gas said in January that natural gas production in their operations in the Kurdistan Region had jumped by 50% since 2018.
