Syria, Russia conclude gas deal

DAMASCUS, Syria, Oct. 14 (UPI) -- Russia and Syria Tuesday agreed to a $71 million deal to transport natural gas from Syria's northern city of Aleppo into Turkey, officials said.

The Russian construction firm Stroytransgaz and the state-run Syrian Gas Co. agreed to an 18-month project to build a 39-mile pipeline to Turkey, the Syrian News Agency said.

Both parties in 2005 collaborated on the 200-mile Arab Gas Pipeline from Egypt. Plans for that project include expansion throughout the Middle East and Europe, bringing the total estimated length to 750 miles.

The oil sector in Syria has sagged in recent years, leaving the country with the task of shoring up its energy reserves by focusing on natural gas.

Stroytransgaz, a subsidiary of Russian energy giant Gazprom, also has operated in Algeria, India and Saudi Arabia. It reached a construction deal to build a major pipeline in the United Arab Emirates earlier this year.