If Israel wants to keep its northern border quiet and free of Iranian influence, it should work with the new Syrian government to expand energy sources and get its economy back up and running
Joel Parker Apr 3, 202
Syria and its economy are coping with the remnants of its bloody civil war. Israel’s policies in Syria have been both counterproductive and short-sighted in recent months. But in the long-term, if Israel wants to keep its northern border quiet and free of Iranian influence, it would be wise to work with the new Syrian government to expand energy sources, which will help power their country and get its population back to work. While fossil fuels have previously driven electricity production in the region, Israel and Syria can work together to bring alternative, green solutions to the forefront.
On Tuesday, Syria’s power grid suffered a crash, causing unscheduled blackouts in Homs, Tartous, and Hama for several hours. The entire infrastructure, based in Aleppo, was badly damaged and completely unmaintained throughout 14 years of civil war. However, the most immediate problem facing Syria’s existent power grid is the lack of fuel. The minster of energy in the interim government recently reported that Syria would need 23 million cubic meters of gas and 5,000 tons of oil per day to reach 24 hours a day electricity for most cit
Before its civil war, Syria was an oil exporter. In 1968 Syria’s oil fields began production and in 1974 then-President Hafez Assad created the Syria Petroleum Company. Around the same time, the Soviet Union helped Syria develop hydro power, with the creation of the Euphrates and Tishreen Dams and a series of lakes designed to provide irrigation and electricity. Former Syrian President Bashar Assad, who inherited the presidency from his father in 2000, relied mainly on Syria’s oil and gas and left these projects in disrepair.
The Syrian regime first lost control its oil and gas fields in 2014 when ISIS invaded. Pirate extraction enabled ongoing production of 56,000 barrels of oil a day from the eastern Deir ez-Zur region’s Omar field, and much of it was sold to private distributors and middlemen. Over the next four years, the US-led coalition that fought ISIS came to control almost all of Syria’s oil fields. But the total amount of oil extracted was only about a tenth of the roughly 350,000 barrels of oil per day that the Syrian regime was able to produce in the preceding decade. In regime-held parts of Syria, Iranian oil fulfilled most of Syria’s need for electricity with almost daily deliveries of 100,000 barrels of oil.
In the past few weeks, the vacuum left by Iran’s departure has been replaced by Russia, which has begun delivering crude oil in weekly shipments at similar volumes. Israel does not oppose this, as it fits with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s push to have Russia present in Syria. Qatar and Turkey are also currently involved in Syria’s energy sector: Qatar has promised to deliver natural gas via Jordan, while Turkey has been supplying power to the north for several years, in areas held by rebels even before Assad’s fall.
However, in areas that were held by the regime, only a small percentage of homes have more than a few of hours of electricity per day. Qatari gas is expected to add another two hours per day of electricity to the south of Syria and enable Damascus to keep lights on at night. Still, more power is needed.
In the medium-term, gas originating in Israel is one way that Syria could meet its goals to electrify the nation. A study written by senior members of the Washington Institute in 2021 envisioned a grand scheme that would provide electricity for Syria and Lebanon via Jordan with Israeli gas. Aside from political objections Syria might have to getting Israeli gas, Damascus does not have a way to finance the infrastructure or the gas supply on its own. Perhaps the Gulf States would agree to pay initially, since it is in everyone’s interest to get Syria back on its feet.
Syrians would likely prefer to return to the situation from 2010 when gas and oil was locally sourced, refined, and channeled to the electricity grid. Yet this is easier said than done due to mismanagement of the oil fields and damage to the Homs refinery, and the need to fully replace expensive transformers in Syria’s original power plants. Moreover, getting Syria’s oil and gas fields back to full production would require significant investment from foreign companies, who would likely not agree without first securing the attack-prone area.
If Syria’s local oil output is revived, in theory, it could refine most of its own production. However, even if Syria reaches pre-war levels and manages to get the oil-based power plants restarted, it will not be able to meet the electricity demands of a small developing country where air conditioning and internet are in demand. Electricity is both a contributor to economic productivity and a sign that the economy is doing well. And, as we all know, a strong economy is likely to provide quiet in the neighborhood.
One way Syria could overcome the situation, and remain energy independent (rather than dependent on Russia as it is right now), is to move toward solar power farms in its desert, which covers 55 precent of the country. New technology and battery storage could be used to at least double what the Damascus area currently has, and it would do so cleanly, without toxic chemicals in the air or water. Israel should encourage its allies in the West, particularly in Germany, where the current foreign minister of the Green Party (who has visited Syria twice in recent months) might be interested in radically rethinking Syria’s power grid.
Solar power and green tech are relatively new in Syria and could benefit from Israeli technological solutions, some of which specialize in cost-saving measures and dry climates. For example, Israel has begun to generate wind power in the Golan Heights, which could be replicated on the Syrian side both in the Golan and in large unused areas like the al-Hammad Plateau. So too could Israel’s DeserTech platform offer pertinent solutions, based on its projects in 11 African countries. This is needed in Syria as well, as the Syrian Desert encroaches on Damascus year by year.
Israel should move to help create new experiments in green electricity production for Syria. If this issue isn’t addressed soon, Syria risks returning to a chaotic oil market with potential partners like Iran resurfacing, again awakening instability in the region. The Syrian state also needs legitimate revenues and centralized organization to prevent the return of the illicit drug trade, pirate oil extraction, and sectarian violence – and this is deeply in Israel’s interest. The key to helping Syria help itself will be encouraging a long-term framework, namely, a new energy paradigm that promotes a brighter, safer, and greener future.
Joel D. Parker is a research fellow at the Moshe Dayan Center for Middle Eastern and African Studies who focuses on Syrian politics and history.