The Iraq’s refinery at Baiji, 130 miles north of Baghdad, has been attacked again by the Islamic State militants amid the intensifying of the US campaign against the extremist group.
A police officer was quoted by Bloomberg as saying that the Baiji refinery’s crude oil storage tank was set on fire following a firing of mortar rounds by militants.
However, there is no actual survey in order to estimate the extent of damage to all equipment and systems.
The police officer said: "The fire could go on for two or three days as there is no civil defense to put it out.
"The situation in the refinery’s perimeter is quiet now."
Since June, the refinery has been attacked several times by the Islamic State militants as they seek to secure fuel funding for caliphate, Gulf News reports.
Responsible for almost 48% of the nation’s oil products production in the first-half of 2014, the Baiji refinery has an installed capacity of 310,000 barrels a day.
Earlier in September, the Kurdistan Regional Government Minister of Natural Resources Ashti Hawrami told Reuters at a conference in Istanbul: "It would take more than a year to repair the Baiji refinery."
Image: Iraq is a major oil producer. Photo: courtesy of tungphoto/Freedigitalphotos.net.