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BP, Totalenergies and ENI have begun evacuating staff from Iraqi oil fields amid concerns that neighboring Iran could retaliate against Israel and the US by bombing the local energy infrastructure.
The three European oil majors “temporarily evacuated foreigners” from the country’s south, but local staff continued to operate and oil production was unaffected, Iraqi’s state-run Basra Oil Company said in a statement Monday.
The decision marks the first confirmation of an international oil company pulling staff from the region since Israel launched its first attack on Iran 10 days ago, following a US air attack on Iran’s nuclear site over the weekend.
BP confirmed the decision, adding that its operations have no impact. “As a precaution, BP has decided to move some staff from Iraq,” the statement said.
Basra Oil Company said Eni reduced its presence from 260 to 90, with the total evacuating 60% of its personnel.
The Italian oil major declined to comment on the number of people who moved from Iraq, but confirmed that it had decided to reduce the country’s presence as a “precautionary measure.” Total declined to comment.
Iran’s commander-in-chief Major General Abdulrahim Musavi said on Monday that the country’s military is entitled to retaliate against US interests, and that some analysts fear that Western operations in the region could become targeted.
The Islamic Republic can support several militias in Iraq and call for launching attacks on Western energy infrastructure, said Helima Croft, a former CIA analyst currently in the RBC’s capital market.
“If Iranian leaders believe their survival is at stake, they could put serious pressure on the rest of the proxies in Iraq and Yemen.
She added: “There is a clear and current risk of energy attacks as it is one of the remaining ways that the Iranian regime can impose costs on the West.”
