Syria on Tuesday signed a contract involving US oil giant ConocoPhillips to develop the country's gas sector, state media reported, as Damascus seeks to attract international energy investment. Damascus previously signed memoranda of understanding on energy with international companies including Chevron as well as HKN Energy, which has begun managing and operating oil fields recently handed over to the government by Syrian Kurdish authorities. State news agency SANA reported that the state-owned Syrian Petroleum Company signed "a contract with US companies ConocoPhillips and Novaterra with the aim of developing a number of gas fields in Syria and increasing production from existing fields". The move seeks to "contribute to supporting the energy system and strengthening gas supplies required for the electricity sector and other vital sectors," it said. In Washington last week, Syrian Petroleum Company CEO Youssef Qablawi said it would be "the biggest contract" to be signed since the new authorities took power after the December 2024 ouster of longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad. At the signing ceremony in Damascus, Qablawi said the move was "an important step in the process of developing the gas sector in Syria". "Through this cooperation, we look forward to increasing production, improving operational capabilities and supporting the energy system," he added. A Syrian delegation headed by Energy Minister Mohammad al-Bashir held talks in Washington last week on investment prospects in energy and infrastructure in Syria and possible partnerships with the US private sector. After years of civil war that fractured the country and ravaged its industries and infrastructure, Syria is seeking to modernize its energy infrastructure, attract investment and boost development as it pushes on a path of economic recovery, particularly after the lifting of Assad-era sanctions. Syria aims to produce one million barrels of oil per day by 2030 and is seeking to broaden international cooperation on exploration and production. Last month, Syria signed a memorandum of understanding with ConocoPhillips, France's TotalEnergies and Qatar's QatarEnergy, on offshore oil and gas exploration. In February, it also signed a preliminary deal with US energy giant Chevron and Qatari firm Power International for offshore energy exploration. Damascus now controls all the country's oil and gas fields, after taking over areas previously under Kurdish control in the north and northeast this year. The deputy governor of the northeastern Hasakah province, Ahmed al-Hilali, on Monday said HKN Energy had begun managing and operating those fields.
