Syria exports crude oil for the first time in 14 years

Syria exported 600,000 barrels of heavy crude oil on Monday from the port of Tartus as part of a deal with a trading firm, a Syrian energy official told Reuters, the first known official export of Syrian oil in 14 years.

Syria exported 380,000 barrels of oil per day (bpd) in 2010, a year before protests against Bashar al-Assad's rule spiralled into a nearly 14-year war that devastated the country's economy and infrastructure - including crude production.

Assad was toppled in December last year and the Islamist-led government that replaced him pledged to revive Syria's economy.

Riyad al-Joubasi, assistant director for oil and gas at Syria's energy ministry, told Reuters the heavy crude oil had been sold to B Serve Energy.

B Serve is linked to BB Energy, a global oil trading firm. BB Energy did not immediately reply to a request for comment.

Syria's energy ministry said in a written statement the oil was exported on the Nissos Christiana tanker.

Joubasi said it had been extracted from several Syrian fields but did not say which ones.

Most Syrian oil fields lie in the northeast, in territory held by Kurdish-led authorities. Those authorities began providing oil to the central government in Damascus in February, but ties have deteriorated since then over fears about inclusivity and rights for minorities, including Kurds.

Oilfields changed hands multiple times during Syria's war and US and European sanctions complicated both legitimate exports and imports. Sanctions remained in place for several months after Assad's ouster, making energy imports difficult for Syria's new administration.

But after US President Donald Trump issued an executive order in June to lift American sanctions on Syria, US-based firms began developing a master plan to help explore and extract Syrian oil and gas.

Syria has also signed an $800 million memorandum of understanding with DP World to develop, manage and operate a multi-purpose terminal at Tartus, after Syria canceled a contract with a Russian firm that had operated the port under Assad.

(Reporting by Mahmoud Hasano; additional reporting by Yousef Saba; writing by Maya Gebeily; editing by Mark Heinrich)