Türkiye may supply power to Syria, Lebanon: Minister

Türkiye may provide electricity to Syria and Lebanon, depending on the situation in the transmission network, Energy Minister Alparslan Bayraktar has said.

Speaking to reporters in the southeastern province of Şanlıurfa, Bayraktar said that a Turkish delegation is in Damascus to evaluate Syria's energy infrastructure.

Syria's pre-war installed power capacity of 8,500 megawatts declined to 3,500 megawatts, the minister noted, adding that the vast majority of Syrians meet their electricity needs with generators.

Türkiye currently provides electricity and energy services to some regions in Syria, according to Bayraktar.

Both Syria and Lebanon can import the electricity they need from Türkiye, the minister said.

"Of course, we'll have a clearer picture once we assess the situation in the transmission grid," he added.

Last week, Bayraktar said the Turkish delegation, which arrived in Damascus on Dec. 28, would evaluate the current state of energy infrastructure in Syria and discuss opportunities for cooperation and assistance.

In Şanlıurfa, the minister told reporters that Türkiye wants to help Syria utilize its own resources.

"For this reason, the delegation in Damascus includes representatives from the oil and natural gas industries," he said.

Those representatives will carry out studies on Syria's oil production, which was around 350,000 barrels a day before 2011, Bayraktar added.