Gas, oil and mineral resources are the most important natural resources of energy in Syria, yielding significant economic gains.

Gas was the most important natural resource in Syria in 2009 where many gas fields were discovered, increasing gas reserve in the country and its production in the future along with launching a number of important gas projects. Syria's gas production has reached 25million cubic meters per day.

In December 2009, President Bashar al-Assad inaugurated the South Central Area gas plant which aims at processing the natural gas extracted from the fields of Abu Rabah, Qumqum, and al-Fayyid.

The productive capacity of the plant is 7, 56 million cubic meters of raw gas, producing from 6, 15 to 7, 2 million cubic meters of clean gas per day.

President al-Assad also inaugurated the first stage of the Arab Gas Pipeline project in Homs Province to serve as the main line for transporting gas among Arab companies and connecting with the European gas network in the future.

The first section of the pipeline extended from the Syrian-Jordanian borders until al-Rayyan gas station in Homs with a length of around 320 kilometers. The second section extended from Homs up to the Keles area near the Syrian-Turkish borders with a length of around 250 kilometers.

The project aims at transporting and distributing the natural gas from Egypt to Syria, Jordan and Lebanon and it might expand to allow Iraq and other main producers of natural gas in the region to export gas to Europe or vice versa.

In November 2009, Hayyan oil and gas processing plant officially opened in Jihar field to the west of Palmyra.It aims at processing oil and gas extracted from the fields of Hayyan Oil Company. The productive capacity of the plant is 6, 000 oil barrels and 650, 000 cubic meters of clean gas per day.

In August 2009, Syria and Turkey signed in initials a memo of understanding to connect gas networks in both countries in order to start later negotiations in many issues, including a short-term agreement for the sale and purchase of natural gas to supply Syria with 0.5 to 1 billion cubic meters of gas from Turkey annually for five years starting in 2011.

Ministry of oil and Mineral resources has recently announced that Syria's natural gas production has reached 25 million cubic meters per day, producing 18 to 19 million cubic meters of clean gas in addition to importing 2.5 million cubic meters of Egyptian gas per day.

In the domain of exploring and producing gas and oil, the Syrian General Establishment of Petroleum signed on July 7th a contract with French Total Company on the project of al-Tabia gas field in the northeastern Syrian Deir Ezzor Province.

The project aims at increasing the amount of clean gas imported to the other countries through the national gas network.

In April 2009 Syrian Ministry of Oil and Mineral Resources signed a Memo of Understanding with the Iranian Ministry of Oil on consolidating cooperation in the sectors of oil, gas and refining industry. The memo calls for further cooperation between Syria and Iran in the fields of exploring and refining gas and oil in the two countries.

In February, President al-Assad issued the legislative decree No.15 on establishing the General Establishment of Petroleum that would suggest the strategies related to exploring, developing and investing oil and gas and outline the basic principles and laws in this domain in coordination with the Ministry of Oil and Mineral Resources.

In January 2009, the Russian Company of Tatneft announced the discovery of three oil fields in Syria with a flow estimated at 150 cubic meters per day.

The Russian company works according to an agreement with the Syrian Petroleum Company allowing it to explore and invest oil fields in the northeastern Syrian Deir Ezzor Province provided that it invests the fields for seven years with a value of more than USD 26 millions.

Ruaa AL-Jazaeri/ Ghossoun  SANA