ISTANBUL

Syria and Saudi Arabia signed a number of agreements in the oil and gas sectors on Tuesday, according to local media.

The state-owned Syrian Petroleum Company inked four deals with Saudi companies at the headquarters of the Energy Ministry in the capital Damascus, according to the Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA).

The deals cover “technical support services and the development of oil and gas fields in Syria,” the agency said, without naming the Saudi signatories of the agreements.

On Nov. 19, the CEO of the Syrian Petroleum Company, Youssef Qaballawi, announced the discovery of five new gas fields in the western Sahel region.

According to 2015 figures, proven gas reserves in Syria amounted to about 8.5 trillion cubic feet, while the average daily production of non-associated gas is about 250 million cubic meters, representing 58% of the country's total gas production.

Gas associated with oil constitutes 28% of production, most of which comes from the east of the Euphrates River.

The new Syrian government, under the presidency of Ahmad al-Sharaa, seeks to improve the country's energy sector by signing agreements and MoUs with several governments and institutions to support the reconstruction and economic recovery of the country after 14 years of civil war.