Jamaine Punzalan

Article (news)

Agence France-Presse

<p>Qatar&#x27;s main gas facility has suffered extensive damage after several rounds of Iranian strikes, causing new energy supply fears as the Middle East war grinds on.</p><p>Here is a look at some of the key energy facilities that have been targeted in the US-Israel war with Iran.</p><div><br/></div><div><strong>RAS LAFFAN </strong></div><div><br/></div><p>Ras Laffan in Qatar is the<a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/world/2026/3/19/iran-strikes-cause-extensive-damage-at-major-qatar-gas-hub-0900"> world&#x27;s largest liquefied natural gas (LNG) hub.</a></p><p>It has been repeatedly targeted by Iranian strikes since the war began, and has now suffered &quot;extensive damage&quot; after back-to-back waves of hits, state-run QatarEnergy said.</p><p>Early Thursday, QatarEnergy reported &quot;sizeable fires&quot; and significant damage at several LNG facilities at the hub.</p><p>That came after an earlier attack on the Ras Laffan Industrial City on Wednesday had already caused extensive damage to a gas-to-liquids facility.</p><p>Qatar shares the world&#x27;s largest natural gas reservoir with Iran.</p><p>QatarEnergy estimates the Gulf state&#x27;s portion of the reservoir, the North Field, holds about 10 percent of the world&#x27;s known natural gas reserves.</p><p>In recent years, Qatar has inked a series of long-term LNG deals with France&#x27;s Total, Britain&#x27;s Shell, India&#x27;s Petronet, China&#x27;s Sinopec and Italy&#x27;s Eni, among others.</p><p>Earlier in March, Iranian attacks forced QatarEnergy to halt LNG production and declare force majeure.</p><div><br/></div><div><strong>SOUTH PARS </strong></div><div><br/></div><p>Iran&#x27;s strikes on Ras Laffan come after its South Pars/North Dome field was hit on Wednesday.</p><p>The South Pars mega-field is the largest known gas reserve in the world, and supplies around 70 percent of Iran&#x27;s domestic natural gas.</p><p>The strikes on the field, which it shares with Qatar, caused a fire, Iranian state television said.</p><p>The strike was condemned by some of Iran&#x27;s Gulf neighbours, including Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, who have seen energy facilities in their countries come under repeated Iranian attack.</p><div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:960px;display:block" width="960"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/17738889304501773888928224.jpeg" style="width:960px;display:block;height:auto" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960"/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left">US President Donald Trump listens to a reporter&#x27;s question during an Ambassador Meeting in the Cabinet Room of the White House on March 25, 2025 in Washington, DC. Win McNamee, Getty Images/AFP </span></span></span></div><p>US President Donald Trump said Thursday that Israel had carried out the attack and Washington &quot;knew nothing&quot; about it.</p><p>But he warned that if Iran continued attacks against Qatar, US forces would &quot;massively blow up the entirety&quot; of the South Pars field.</p><div><br/></div><div><strong>KHARG</strong></div><div><br/></div><p>Kharg island, around 30 kilometers off Iran&#x27;s mainland, is a hub for roughly 90 percent of the country&#x27;s crude oil exports.</p><p>It was hit in US strikes on Saturday, but Iranian officials said afterwards that exports were continuing normally and there had been no casualties.</p><p>Trump had threatened to target the island&#x27;s oil infrastructure if Iran continues to block the Strait of Hormuz, a crucial passage for energy and other exports from the region.</p><p>Iran has pledged to block export of all oil through the strait, and has targeted vessels attempting to transit the narrow chokepoint, wreaking havoc on exports reliant on the passage.</p><div><br/></div><div><strong>RUWAIS REFINERY </strong></div><div><br/></div><p>The Ruwais oil refinery, in the emirate of Abu Dhabi, is the world&#x27;s fourth largest single-site refinery, according to state-owned operator Adnoc.</p><p>Operations there were halted earlier this month as a &quot;precaution&quot; after a drone attack on the industrial complex housing the facility, a source told AFP.</p><p>The source did not say whether the refinery had been hit. Adnoc did not make an official announcement.</p><div><br/></div><div><strong>RAS TANURA </strong></div><div><br/></div><p>The Ras Tanura facility along Saudi Arabia&#x27;s eastern Gulf coast is home to one of the largest refineries in the entire Middle East and a cornerstone of the kingdom&#x27;s energy sector.</p><p>The complex has a capacity of 550,000 barrels per day.</p><p>It has been repeatedly targeted in Iranian strikes, including a drone attack early in the conflict that caused a fire and forced a partial shutdown of the refinery.</p><p>Bloomberg reported Wednesday, citing an unnamed source, that operations had now resumed at the facility.</p><p>Gulf countries&#x27; output of oil and oil products has plunged from 30 million barrels per day last year, excluding Oman, to 20 million currently, according to the International Energy Agency.</p><p>The president of Aramco, which operates the refinery, has warned the war could have &quot;catastrophic consequences&quot; on oil markets.</p><p>On Thursday, oil surged more than five percent, with Brent spiking to a peak of over $112 a barrel.</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/world/2026/3/19/iran-strikes-cause-extensive-damage-at-major-qatar-gas-hub-0900">Iran strikes cause &#x27;extensive damage&#x27; at major Qatar gas hub</a></div>

<p>US President Donald Trump threatened to destroy Iran's key South Pars gas field if there were further attacks against Qatar's main gas plant.</p>

US President Donald Trump threatened to destroy Iran's key South Pars gas field if there were further attacks against Qatar's main gas plant.

Key Middle East energy sites under fire

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Key Middle East energy sites under fire

Agence France-Presse

Published Mar 19, 2026 10:55 AM PHT

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Updated Mar 19, 2026 12:34 PM PHT

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Iran

Qatar

Middle East

war

US

Israel

Trump

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