Following more than a decade of international isolation and armed conflict, Syria’s oil and gas sector is beginning to recover. This article builds on our previous examination of the sector’s governance framework to explore recent developments, legal shifts, macroeconomic consequences, and the strategic implications of renewed foreign interest.
Since the 1950s, the sector’s growth has been strongly supported by international companies, whose advanced technologies and practices enhanced exploration and production. Legally, investment has been structured around joint ventures between state-owned entities and foreign firms operating through subsidiaries. By 2010, international companies accounted for about half of oil production, underscoring their substantial role.
From 2011 onward, however, international sanctions were imposed by the US, EU, and UK, among others. They targeted public entities such as the Ministry of Petroleum and Mineral Resources and the General Petroleum Company, while also restricting dealings with the Central Bank of Syria. These sanctions, combined with deteriorated security conditions, pushed most foreign firms to withdraw or suspend operations under force majeure. Although local courts allowed joint ventures to continue with local staff after foreign withdrawals, the legacy of suspended partnerships still generates legal and financial complications.
After the collapse of the Assad regime, however, policy shifts in Western capitals transformed the operating environment. In May, the US Treasury issued General License 25, granting immediate sanctions relief. The State Department also introduced a 180-day waiver from sanctions imposed under the Caesar Act. That same month, the EU formally lifted all economic sanctions and removed 24 entities from its sanctions list, including oil production and refining companies. Earlier in March, the UK had also eased restrictions on energy services and lifted the asset freeze on several local oil companies.
Syrian officials welcomed the lifting of sanctions on key sectors. The caretaker Energy Minister called it “an important step that will enable us to accelerate the development of the oil sector, rehabilitate infrastructure, and build national capacities in a way that enhances the independence and sustainability of this vital sector.”
In response, multiple governments expressed interest in reviving Syria’s oil and gas sector. Türkiye moved first, announcing plans to rehabilitate and equip the Kilis–Aleppo natural gas pipeline, as well as develop additional transit routes linking Syrian oil and gas resources to Türkiye’s export terminals.
Azerbaijan also emerged as a key player. At the Antalya Diplomacy Forum in April, Interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa met with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev to discuss cooperation, including the involvement of the State Oil Company of the Republic of Azerbaijan (SOCAR). This materialized later in August with the start of gas deliveries from Azerbaijan to Syria via Türkiye, funded by Qatar.
Iraq followed suit. In April, a delegation visited Damascus to explore reopening the Kirkuk–Baniyas pipeline, damaged in 2003 and estimated to cost USD 300–600 million to repair. The Syrian Energy Minister then visited Baghdad in August to continue discussions.
In May, Energy Minister Mohammad al-Bashir and Saudi Arabia’s Deputy Minister of Industry and Mineral Resources discussed joint investment opportunities and regional energy cooperation. Around the same time, reports surfaced that President Sharaa had offered US companies privileged access to Syria’s energy sector to ease sanctions and improve ties with Washington. A confidential plan revealed in May outlined a proposed joint venture, SyriUS Energy, between Syrian authorities and US firms. The five-phase strategy involves oil field security and infrastructure repair, supply restoration, creating a national oil company, ensuring transparent governance, and enabling exports through regional networks.
The proposed company would be listed in the US stock market and 30%-owned by a Syrian sovereign wealth fund. The plan, submitted by the CEO of Argent Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG), may have limited success, as many of Syria’s current oil blocks are already claimed by companies forced to suspend operations because of conflict and sanctions.
In February, then-Minister of Oil and Mineral Resources Ghiath Diab publicly called on previously operating oil companies to return and revitalize the sector, stressing that natural resources and national determination would be key to restoring Syria’s position in the energy landscape despite prevailing challenges. As part of this effort, Damascus formally invited Russia’s Tatneft to resume activity in Block 27 near the Iraqi border, where it had operated between 2005 and the end of 2011.
