A motorcycle moves past stalled oil tanker trucks as protesters block the M4 highway in Tal Tamr in Syria’s northeastern Hasakeh province in September 2026 [Getty]
Syria needs $831 million a month to purchase crude oil and petroleum products and is facing a significant gas supply shortfall, Syrian Energy Minister Mohammed al-Bashir said on Sunday.
Al-Bashir made the remarks during a briefing to Syria’s People’s Assembly in a session dedicated to reviewing the state of the energy sector, particularly petroleum products and rising fuel prices.
Oil prices climbed back above $100 a barrel last week after new US strikes on Iranian oil tankers in the Gulf, while renewed fighting in Yemen has raised fresh concerns over shipping through the Bab al-Mandeb Strait.
The Syrian government recently temporarily raised the price of a litre of diesel to 175 Syrian pounds ($1.43), an increase of around 40%, while petrol prices rose by more than 25%, triggering the largest protests across the country since the toppling of longtime dictator Bashar al-Assad in 2024.
Syria is emerging from a 14-year civil war that killed more than half a million people and left the country in economic ruin.
“Syria needs $831 million a month to purchase crude oil and petroleum products,” al-Bashir said.
Domestic oil production currently stands at 112,000 barrels per day, leaving a shortfall of around 200,000 barrels per day that is covered through imports, he said.
Syria has 78 oil fields, while the ministry is working to rehabilitate production infrastructure and restart oil wells.
The ministry has also formed a committee to assess the country’s oil and gas reserves and prepare a new map as part of a strategic plan to increase production.
“We will achieve self-sufficiency in oil by 2028,” al-Bashir said.
In the gas sector, domestic production currently stands at around 8 million cubic metres per day, up from roughly 6 million previously, while the country’s daily demand stands at 24 million cubic metres.
The ministry is drilling additional wells to boost production, although reaching “satisfactory” production levels could take around seven years, al-Bashir said.
To help meet part of its needs, Syria currently purchases 6.3 million cubic metres of gas per day from Azerbaijan and from a vessel at Jordan’s Aqaba port, at a cost of around $140 million a month, according to the minister.
Syria’s domestic refining capacity stands at 150,000 barrels per day, while the country imports a similar volume of refined petroleum products.
Al-Bashir attributed the rise in demand for fuel to an increase in the number of vehicles in the country, from around 2.5 million to 3.6 million. Daily demand stands at 12 million litres of diesel and 8 million litres of petrol, he said.
Average fuel-oil consumption is around 8,500 tonnes per day for power-generation plants and the industrial sector, in addition to approximately 1,300 tonnes of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) for household use.
The minister said the main challenges facing the energy sector include securing the foreign currency needed to purchase crude oil, petroleum products and spare parts, as well as gaps in data and difficulties in securing crude oil supplies.
As part of efforts to strengthen gas supplies, he said the ministry had invited bids to complete the Arab Gas Pipeline linking Syria and Jordan. The project is estimated to cost around $250 million, which would be borne by the Syrian Petroleum Company.
Al-Bashir also said Damascus is considering contracts with “friendly oil-producing countries” to secure its energy needs until Syria achieves self-sufficiency.