Syria, Turkey to Build Dam on Border Running Along Orontes River

Syria and Turkey will lay the foundation stone of a dam on their common border on Feb.6, Turkey’s Ambassador to Syria Omer Onhon said.

The two Mediterranean neighbors are discussing details of tenders and financing for the dam on the Orontes River, Onhon said in an interview in Damascus. Technical committees from the two countries will decide whether the dam will be built by Turkey or Syria or by both countries, he said.

Syria and Turkey are engaged in negotiations over water- sharing issues and are building gas pipelines. Water shortages are undermining efforts to maintain economic growth in Syria where agriculture until recently accounted for about 25 percent of gross domestic product. Drought is also a potential source of tension as Syria competes for shared river water with Turkey, Iraq and Israel.

The dam will be built on the Orontes River, which flows from Lebanon into Syria and Turkey. It is meant to prevent floods, generate electricity and irrigate farms in both countries, he said.

To contact the reporters on this story: Lina Ibrahim in Dubai at librahim4@bloomberg.net, or Nayla Razzouk in Amman at nrazzouk2@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Stephen Voss at sev@bloomberg.net