At least 54 people were injured, and 18 are missing in a natural gas export facility explosion in Qatar, the Associated Press reports.

The blast happened on 21st June night, when workers were trying to restart operations after damage caused by Iranian strikes in the conflict in the industrial zone of Ras Laffan. The explosion set off a big fire at the Barzan gas supply facility, owned by QatarEnergy.

The initial reports indicated only light casualties, but hours later Qatar’s Interior Ministry reported that dozens of people were injured and several remain missing.

The incident follows Qatar’s efforts to reopen gas supplies following disruptions due to tensions in the Strait of Hormuz region. The nation had previously suspended production because of Iranian attacks that had cut down the transport of production.

The Barzan facility is capable of generating almost 1.4 billion standard cubic feet of gas a day, which is very important to provide energy for domestic use, either for the generation of electricity or water desalination.

Qatar has a majority stake in the plant, which is also owned by ExxonMobil. The company has not made any comment about the incident.

There is no indication of the severity of the damage. In the first half of March, there was massive damage to the area of Ras Laffan, due to a missile strike from Iran, which caused a shutdown of the area.

The energy infrastructure in the Persian Gulf is highly significant and highly sensitive to geopolitical rivalries since Qatar has an extensive natural gas field in the Persian Gulf that it shares with Iran, which is one of the major producers of natural gas.