Syrian president, Chevron discuss cooperation in oil, gas exploration, state news agency says

The Syrian state news agency reported on Tuesday that President Ahmed al-Sharaa of Syria met with representatives from U.S. oil giant Chevron and Syrian Petroleum Company in order to discuss the cooperation between the two companies for oil and gas exploration on Syrian shores.

The state-run news agency didn't provide any further details about the discussions. Chevron didn't immediately respond to an inquiry for comment.

Qatar's UCC Holding was also represented at the meeting, according to the official news agency. The company led a consortium that recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding with international companies to develop major energy generation projects, valued at $7 billion.

Syria produces only a fraction (of the electricity needed) of what it requires today due to the destruction caused by its 14-year civil conflict. However, the power supply has significantly improved in recent months, thanks to gas imported from Azerbaijan, and Qatar.

Damascus recently announced that it would increase power supply.

The war is believed to be the reason for the decline in Syria's natural gas production, which has fallen from 8.7 billion cubic meters in 2011 to just 3 billion cubic meters in 2023. (Reporting and editing by Mark Heinrich, Alistair Bell and Muhammad Al Gebaly)

(source: Reuters)