Syria says oil, gas production plunges due to U.S. sanctions

People visit the Syria International Petroleum, Gas and Energy Exhibition (SyrPetro 2023) in Damascus, Syria, July 8, 2023. With participation of more than 55 local and international companies specialized in the oil industries, excavations studies and consultation, the fair runs from July 7 to 10. (Photo by Ammar Safarjalani/Xinhua)

DAMASCUS, July 8 (Xinhua) -- Syrian oil and gas production has dramatically decreased because of U.S. sanctions, the head of a state-run oil company said Saturday.

As a result of the U.S. sanctions and military presence in Syria, oil production has decreased from 385,000 barrels per day (bpd) before the crisis to the present level of 15,000 bpd, while gas production from 30 million cubic meters per day to 10 million cubic meters per day, according to the head of the state-run Syrian Petroleum Company Farhan Jamil Abdullah.

Abdullah spoke to Xinhua at the Fourth Syria International Petroleum, Gas and Energy Exhibition (SyrPetro 2023), which runs from July 7 to 10 in the capital Damascus, with the participation of 55 local and international companies specialized in the oil industries, excavation studies, and consultation.

To try to mitigate the negative impact of the U.S. policy, Abdullah said the company has intensified operations in government-controlled areas west of the Euphrates River, and is digging wells in five positions to overcome the decrease in output.

At the opening ceremony of the exhibition on Friday, Syrian Oil Minister Firas Hassan Kaddour revealed that the losses in the oil, gas, and mineral sectors in Syria are close to 100 billion U.S. dollars, soliciting investment in the energy sector and rebuilding of the infrastructure in Syria.

Mada Ibrahim, a chemical engineer at the Syrian Gas Company, also told Xinhua that the U.S. sanctions affected their work as they obstructed the import of necessary tools and machinery.

Since the start of the Syrian civil war in 2011, the United States and its Western allies have imposed a number of economic sanctions and restrictions on Syria.

The country is reeling under a severe energy crisis as a result of the sanctions and the U.S. control of key oil and gas fields in northern and northeastern Syria.