Turkey ramps up energy exports to Syria: Turkey is set to begin exporting roughly 2 bn cbm of gas to Syria annually, Turkish daily Anadolu Agency reports, citing Turkey’s Energy and Natural Resources Minister Alparslan Bayraktar as saying. The exports are set to buttress Syria’s electricity generation capacity by 1.3 GW, Reuters reports citing Bayraktar. This will come on top of a tripling of Turkish electricity exports to reach 1 GW, Bayraktar said.

IN CONTEXT- The US just issued a far-reaching, immediate sanctions relief for Syria, including a waiver for the Caesar Syria Civilian Protection Act to unlock an inflow of private investment into the war-torn nation, according to a statement by the US Treasury Department published on Saturday. The move — part of a wider global effort to remove full sanctions — authorizes previously prohibited transactions, including new investment, financial services, and transactions involving Syrian-origin petroleum or petroleum products.

Scrambling to reconstruct: Saudi-based Al Jouf Cement Company and Mohammed Shahi Al Ruwaili Contracting inked a SAR 38 mn (c. USD 10.1 mn) contract to export cement and clinker goods to Syria a month after the Assad regime collapsed. Saudi Arabia has been pressing the West to ease sanctions on Syria to boost reconstruction efforts, arguing that “sanctions will hinder the aspirations of the Syrian people to achieve development,” Reuters reported at the time, citing comments by Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud.

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