DUBAI (Reuters) -Qatar said on Tuesday its gas production at the South Pars field is steady and supply is proceeding normally, after the world’s largest gas field was struck by Israel on Saturday, prompting Iran to partially suspend its production.
Qatar, the world’s third biggest liquefied natural gas exporter after the U.S. and Australia, shares the South Pars gas field with Iran.
Iran partially suspended production at the field after an Israeli strike caused a fire on Saturday.
“So far, gas supplies are proceeding normally. However, the ill-advised targeting raises concerns for everyone regarding gas supplies,” Qatar foreign ministry spokesperson Majed Al-Ansari said.
“This is a reckless move… The companies operating in the fields are international, and there is a global presence, especially in the North Field,” he said during a weekly press briefing in Doha.
The South Pars field is located offshore in Iran’s southern Bushehr province and is responsible for the bulk of gas production in Iran, the world’s third largest gas producer after the United States and Russia.
Critical energy infrastructure in Israel and Iran has not escaped unscathed from the first few days of the countries’ conflict.
U.S. President Donald Trump said he wanted a “real end” to the nuclear dispute with Iran, and indicated he may send senior American officials to meet with Islamic Republic officials as the Israel-Iran air war raged for a fifth straight day on Thursday.
(Reporting by Jana Choukeir and Ahmed Elimam in Dubai; writing by Marwa Rashad in London; editing by Barbara Lewis and Emelia Sithole-Matarise)
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