Chevron signs preliminary exploration agreement for Syrian waters with Qatari company

Chevron has signed a memorandum of understanding, or preliminary agreement, with the Syrian Petroleum Company and the Qatari firm UCC Holding, to assess the potential for oil and gas exploration off the Syrian coast, a spokesperson for the American group said Wednesday.

The Syrian coastline, in the eastern Mediterranean, is located between several major gas discoveries made in recent years in Israel and Egypt.

Chevron already operates the giant Leviathan gas field off the coast of Israel, which is the country’s main energy asset.

In 2013, the Russian company Soyuzneftegaz signed an offshore exploration agreement in Syria, but the project was abandoned two years later amid continued civil war.

The bulk of Syria’s oil production currently comes from onshore fields located in the northeast of the country, particularly the al-Omar field.

UCC Holding is a subsidiary of the Qatari group Power International Holding, according to information published on its website.

This article is a translation of a dispatch published by Reuters.

Chevron signe un accord initial d’exploration des eaux syriennes avec une entreprise qatarie