DOHA, November 27. /TASS/. Syria has begun work on the construction of a new oil refinery with a capacity of 150,000 barrels per day (bpd), according to Mohammed al-Bashir, energy minister in the country’s transitional government.
"Work is underway to build a new oil refinery with a capacity of 150,000 barrels per day," he told the Syrian broadcaster Alikhbaria, adding that Damascus has also launched exploration of offshore gas fields in the Mediterranean. According to al-Bashir, the new authorities of the republic "have signed several contracts with Saudi, Qatari, and Emirati companies for gas exploration and production."
Following the change of government in Syria, the Gulf monarchies — primarily Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates — have stepped up investment and humanitarian cooperation with Damascus. In November, the Emirati logistics operator DP World began managing the Syrian port of Tartus on the Mediterranean coast. In October, Saudi Arabia delivered its first shipment of oil to Syria as part of an aid package intended to support the country’s energy sector totaling 1.65 mln barrels. Several months earlier, Damascus had signed a memorandum with a consortium led by Qatar’s UCC Holding to carry out major power-sector projects worth around $7 bln.