Turkey has expressed its intention to support efforts to boost oil and natural gas production in Syria, marking a step toward deeper involvement in rebuilding the country after years of conflict.
Turkish Energy Minister Alparslan Bayraktar stated on Wednesday that authorities are also exploring solutions to address Syria’s electricity needs, as the country’s infrastructure has suffered significant damage over the past decade.
“We are evaluating the use of crude oil and natural gas in Syria’s reconstruction. We plan to present proposals to our counterparts on how we can contribute,” Bayraktar said. “Our goal is to develop these projects.”
Bayraktar’s remarks emphasize Turkey’s ambition to take part in Syria’s rebuilding process after Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) seized the capital, Damascus, ousting President Bashar al-Assad and ending the civil war that began in 2011. Although Syria was a small-scale producer of oil and gas even before the conflict, much of its production infrastructure was shuttered during the war, and political challenges remain in reviving its energy sector.
HTS, the Islamist group that recently took control, is designated as a terrorist organization by many countries. However, the Group of Seven nations have indicated their willingness to support Syria’s new government, while Turkey has suggested it may soon remove HTS from its list of terrorist groups.
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is pursuing closer ties with the groups leading Syria’s interim government. This outreach could pave the way for Turkish companies to take a prominent role in Syria’s reconstruction and potentially facilitate the return of some of the 3 million Syrian refugees currently in Turkey.
In the long term, Bayraktar noted that cooperation could result in new oil and gas pipelines connecting Syria to Turkish export terminals. Syria’s oil production is currently estimated at only about 30,000 barrels per day—just 5% of the output seen two decades ago, according to Turkish estimates.
