Pipeline fire kills two at Iraq’s Zubair field

A pipeline fire at the Zubair oilfield in southern Iraq’s Basra province killed at least two workers and seriously injured five others, officials said. The blaze began during welding operations near a crude-oil pipeline that links the field to on-site storage tanks and was reported to have been triggered by a gas leak in an aging pumping system at the storage facility. One of the fatalities was an employee of the state-run Basra Oil Company (BOC); several of the wounded are in critical condition with severe burns.

Firefighting teams worked for hours to bring the blaze under control, and authorities said containment was achieved by mid‑afternoon. Officials stressed that oil production at Zubair was not interrupted and continued at about 400,000 barrels per day, but warned that the fire needed to be fully extinguished quickly to avoid potential disruption to loading operations. Investigations have been launched to determine whether welders were following safety protocols and whether corrosion or degraded equipment in the pipeline and pumping installations contributed to the gas leak and subsequent ignition.

The incident underscores long‑standing safety and maintenance challenges within Iraq’s oil sector, particularly at older facilities that are critical to the country’s export revenues and domestic stability. Iraq’s oil ministry has signaled that antiquated equipment and corrosion may have played a role, and has pledged a full safety review and repair plan though offered no timetable for completion. Earlier this year some international oil companies operating at Zubair, including Eni, scaled back foreign staffing over security and safety concerns, highlighting broader operational risks in the field.

Authorities said forensic and technical teams will inspect the site to establish the sequence of events, identify responsibility, and recommend measures to prevent recurrence. Meanwhile, hospitals in the region are treating the injured and authorities have not ruled out the possibility of additional fatalities as some patients remain in critical condition. The human toll from the accident has drawn attention from labor and safety observers, who note that field workers face significant hazards amid ongoing pressure to maintain high output levels.

Given Zubair’s role as a major contributor to Iraq’s oil exports and fiscal position, regulators and company managers face heightened scrutiny to ensure that production continuity does not come at the expense of worker safety. The outcome of the probe, planned repairs, and any operational safeguards introduced will be closely watched by Baghdad and foreign partners, as authorities aim to balance the imperative of uninterrupted oil flows with urgent infrastructure upgrades and stricter safety enforcement.