Syria signs $7bn Qatari-led deal to double power supply

Syria on Thursday signed a $7 billion deal with a Qatar-led business group aimed at doubling the country's power supply, in the latest move to boost its postwar economy.

The Syrian government signed an agreement with a consortium of companies led by Qatar's UCC Holding to add 5,000 megawatts to the national grid. The country is being battered by a severe power crisis.

“Today, we are witnessing a historic moment that marks a turning point in Syria's energy and electricity sector, as we work to rebuild the crumbling infrastructure of this vital sector,” Syria's energy minister Mohammad Al Bashir said in a speech during a signing ceremony at the Syrian presidential palace in Damascus.

“This memorandum strengthens regional co-operation and integration in the energy sector and helps us promote clean and renewable energy projects,” he added. The Syrian state is able to supply only two to three hours of electricity per day in most areas – a crisis that interim President Ahmad Al Shara has pledged to address.

The lifting of sweeping sanctions on Syria has rekindled interest among global investors, with several major companies already establishing a foothold in the war-ravaged economy.

The agreement includes the development of four combined-cycle gas turbine (CCGT) power plants, in Deir Ezzor, Mhardeh, Zayzoun in Hama province, and Treifawi in Homs province, with a total capacity of about 4,000 megawatts. It also covers a 1,000-megawatt solar power plant in Wadyan al-Rabee in southern Syria.

The deal has been spearheaded by the Qatari energy and construction company UCC Holding and involves the US company Power international USA, and the Turkish companies Cengiz Enerji and Kalyon Enerji. UCC chief executive Ramez Al Khayyat praised the agreement, which he said “marks a new phase of joint work to rebuild Syria by achieving self-sufficiency and ensuring sustainable development”.

“We will use the latest equipment in the energy sector, and the project will create over 50,000 direct jobs and 250,000 indirect jobs, contributing to the support of Syria’s labour market,” he added.

Fourteen years of war have decimated Syria’s electricity network, reducing its capacity from 9.5 gigawatts in 2011 to 1.6 gigawatts today. The United Nations estimates that billions of dollars will be needed to rebuild it.

US President Donald Trump announced the lifting of sanctions during his recent Gulf tour, a day before the historic Trump-Al Shara meeting in Riyadh. The US President said he wanted to give the new regime a "chance at greatness".

The EU on Wednesday formalised its own decision to begin lifting economic sanctions, while leaving some in place related to the former regime of Bashar Al Assad.