Syria to Maintain Oil Output in Face of EU Sanctions, IEA Says

Syria is likely to maintain oil production and find alternative buyers after the European Union banned its member states from purchasing the Middle Eastern country’s crude, the International Energy Agency said.

“We do not believe that the sanctions currently in place will affect crude oil production volumes from Syria, which the IEA estimates at 332,000 barrels a day in August,” the group said in its monthly report released today. The ban on dealing in Syrian crude may “exacerbate already-declining mature production in the country,” the IEA said.