French TotalEnergies, together with its partners QatarEnergy and ConocoPhillips, has signed a memorandum of understanding with the Syrian Petroleum Company to conduct oil and natural gas exploration activities in Block 3, located offshore Syria in the Mediterranean.

Under the agreement, the parties will carry out technical review studies for Block 3, which is situated in the open sea, and will establish a joint framework for technical and commercial discussions regarding the exploration activities to be conducted in the region.

The block in question is located in the Levant Basin, off the coast of Latakia in the Eastern Mediterranean. It is reported that the sea depth in the area varies between 100 and 1,700 meters.

Julien Pouget, Senior Vice President of Exploration and Production for the Middle East and North Africa at TotalEnergies, stated, 'We are pleased to re-establish our partnership with the Syrian Petroleum Company, with which we had a long and productive relationship from 1988 to 2011.'

Before the civil war that began in Syria in 2011, the country's daily oil production was approximately 380,000 barrels. The revenue generated from oil exports accounted for about a quarter of the government budget, totaling around 3 billion dollars.

The new agreement is considered one of the significant energy moves for the Damascus administration in the post-Bashar al-Assad era. This development follows a recent agreement with Chevron and Power International Holding to develop Syria's first offshore oil and gas field.

The agreement with Chevron has been recorded as Syria's first official offshore oil and gas exploration initiative following the potential overthrow of the Bashar al-Assad administration in December 2024.

Source: SeaNews Türkiye