Hackers linked to Iran have been blamed for a cyberattack that forced a British power plant offline, the UK government confirmed on Sunday. The affected site was a small-scale energy generator, and officials said the wider national grid faced no risk.
The government moved to reassure the sector after the incident, briefing chief executives of companies operating in the energy industry and offering advice on defensive measures. No estimate of the outage’s duration or the plant’s location was released.
British officials framed the attack as an apparent escalation by Tehran in retaliation against London for permitting the United States to operate from British bases. The claim places the incident within a broader confrontation involving Iran, the United States and the United Kingdom.
The disruption follows months of hostilities across the Middle East and beyond. Earlier this year, Iran launched missiles at a joint US-UK base in the Indian Ocean, part of a widening exchange that has drawn in energy infrastructure across the region.
Cyberattacks on power generation carry particular concern for governments because they can move quickly from a single facility to broader grid instability. In this case, the UK said containment held and no cascading failure occurred.
Attribution of state-linked cyber operations is often disputed, and Tehran has previously rejected accusations of involvement in attacks on Western infrastructure. The UK government did not publicly release forensic evidence tying the intrusion to Iranian state actors.
The energy sector has become a recurring target in the confrontation. Iran previously struck Qatar’s energy sector and main airport, disrupting supply expectations across global markets.
British authorities said they would continue working with operators to strengthen defences against further intrusions. Additional guidance to the sector is expected in the coming days.