Russia's Soyuzneftegaz Drops Plan to Explore for Oil, Gas in Syria

Russia’s private energy firm Soyuzneftegaz has dropped plans to explore for oil and natural gas in Syria due to the ongoing conflict, news agency Reuters reported.

Company’s chairman Yuri Shafranik said the company had frozen its two onshore oil and gas projects in the country.

"The board ... has decided not to proceed and abstained from active participation in the offshore project in Syria," he said at the Reuters Russia Investment Summit.

Soyuzneftegaz acquired the permit for joint exploration of Block 2 of Syria's territorial waters in December 2013. Shafranik has said the project would be passed on to a Russian energy company, which he did not name, Reuters reported.

Two onshore projects block 12 and block 26, near Syria's borders with Turkey and Iraq have also been frozen, he said.