Official: Syria exports its first crude oil shipment for 14 years

A Syrian energy official said that Syria exported 600,000. barrels of heavy oil from Tartus on Monday as part of an agreement with a trading company. This was the first official export of Syrian crude oil in over 14 years.

In 2010, Syria exported 380,000 barrels per day of crude oil. This was a year prior to the protests against Bashar Al-Assad, which spiraled into a 14-year conflict that destroyed the economy and infrastructure.

Assad was overthrown in December of last year, and the islamist-led government which replaced him has pledged to revitalize Syria's economic situation.

Riyad Al-Joubasi told B Serve Energy that the heavy crude oil was sold by Riyad Al-Joubasi.

B Serve has ties to BB Energy, a multinational oil trading company. BB Energy didn't immediately respond to a comment request.

In a written announcement, the Syrian energy ministry stated that the oil was exported by the Nissos Christiana.

Joubasi claimed that it was extracted from several Syrian oil fields, but did not specify which ones.

The majority of Syrian oil fields are located in the northeast on territory controlled by Kurdish authorities. These authorities started providing oil to Damascus' central government in February. However, ties between the two have deteriorated over concerns about inclusivity and minorities rights, including Kurds.

The oilfields in Syria changed hands several times throughout the war, and U.S. sanctions and European sanctions made it difficult for legitimate imports and exports. After Assad was ousted, sanctions remained in effect for several months. This made it difficult for the new government to import energy.

After U.S. President Donald Trump signed an executive order lifting American sanctions against Syria in June, U.S. firms started developing a plan to explore and extract Syrian gas and oil.

Syria also signed a $800 million Memorandum of Understanding with DP World for the development, management and operation of a multipurpose terminal in Tartus. This was after Syria canceled a deal with a Russian company that operated the port during Assad's tenure. (Reporting and writing by Maya Gebeily, with additional reporting from Yousef Saba; editing by Mark Heinrich).

(source: Reuters)