Syria Expects to Soon Regain Oil Fields Occupied by US

DOHA (Sputnik) - Damascus expects to return oil fields that are important but remain under the US's occupation to the control of the Syrian government in the near future, Syrian Oil Minister Firas Hassan Kaddour told Sputnik.

Many oil fields in northern Syria were destroyed as a result of attacks by terrorist groups, these fields returned to the control of the Syrian government, and their restoration began, the official said.

"We expect to liberate the [oil] fields remaining under occupation in the very near future, return them to the Syrian Ministry of Oil and Mineral Resources and begin their restoration," the minister said on the sidelines of the 12th Arab Energy Conference in Qatar's capital city, Doha.

In 2024, Syria will conduct seismic exploration north of Damascus and in other areas to search for oil and gas deposits, he added.

The reconstruction of an oil refinery in the central Syrian province of Homs, which was seriously damaged during the fighting in the country, is expected to begin in 2024, Kaddour added.

"We have defined a plan for the restoration of the oil refinery in Homs, dividing the work into three stages. The first stage is its current repair, which is being carried out by our specialists. The second part is its reconstruction next year, with reconstruction plans being studied now. The development of the plant - that is in long-term plans," the official said.

Last week, the head of coordination of Iranian activities to carry out repair work at extraterritorial oil refineries, Ali Shahverdi, said that Iran would begin rebuilding the Homs refinery with a processing capacity of 120,000 barrels.

The US military currently controls parts of the provinces of Raqqa, Deir ez-Zor and Al-Hasakah, where Syria's largest oil and gas fields are located. The Syrian government considers the presence of the US military on its territory as occupation and state piracy.