Smoke hung over damaged power and desalination sites in Kuwait on the fourth straight day of Iranian attacks. Kuwait’s Ministry of Electricity, Water and Renewable Energy said several generation and desalination plants had been hit again, and that fires broke out at a number of them.
Emergency crews worked with the General Fire Force and security agencies to put the fires out and assess the damage, the ministry said in a statement. Repair work has begun. Some generation units have been taken offline as a precaution, to protect equipment and keep the electricity and water systems stable.
The government has recommended power rationing during peak hours. Reports describe Iranian drones and missiles striking the sites. No deaths have been reported in this latest wave.
Why water is at stake
Kuwait is almost entirely dependent on desalination for drinking water, and desalination takes a great deal of energy. Hit the power plants and the water supply is at risk too. For families, that means rationed electricity now and a worry about the taps behind it.
A pattern since March
The mid-July strikes are a sharp escalation. Attacks have been building since at least March, and earlier incidents in March and April strained Kuwait’s infrastructure. One of them was fatal and killed an Indian worker.
Kuwait is not the only target. Strikes have also affected oil facilities and infrastructure in neighboring Bahrain and the UAE, and the US has reportedly been acting against Iranian threats in response.
Oil markets are watching. When Iranian strikes hit Saudi Aramco facilities in 2019, prices jumped roughly 15% overnight.
Sources
- Kuwait says power, water plants hit by Iranian attacks for fourth day
- Iran's strikes on Kuwait's power and water facilities enter fourth day, raising Gulf energy security fears
