Valeura Energy, which focuses on producing natural gas in Turkey's northwest Thrace basin, remains unaffected by Turkey's recent operation in northern Syria, the Canadian-based energy company announced in a statement on Thursday.
"All of Valeura’s people, contractors, and assets remain safe and not directly impacted by the conflict in northern Syria," the statement said. The company noted that its activities are located more than 1,000 kilometers away from the Turkey-Syria border. The firm said it expects its gas activities and sales to its existing Turkish customers to continue.
The company said it has not received any notice from its contractors or service providers about any disruption to support Valeura’s ongoing activities, but it added the firm has retained external legal counsel from a Washington D.C.-based office amid the U.S. sanctions imposed on Turkish government and some officials. The U.S. Treasury Department announced sanctions Monday on two Turkish ministries and three senior government officials over Turkey’s anti-terror operation in northern Syria.
While Turkey wants to eliminate terrorist elements of the PKK and its Syrian offshoot, the YPG, from the region, Ankara could also face additional sanctions from the U.S. Congress. Senator Lindsey Graham, along with Democratic lawmakers, fiercely opposed U.S. President Donald Trump's withdrawal decision that came as a shock to the PKK/YPG terror group ahead of a Turkish military operation in northern Syria.
Graham announced on Oct. 9 that it reached a bipartisan agreement with Democratic Senator Chris Van Hollen on sanctions against Turkey, and released the draft of a sanctions bill via his Twitter account. Valeura said in the statement it continues to actively monitor the situation, adding "... if required, [it] may take measures to ensure its operations remain conducted in such a manner as to not trigger sanctions imposed by the Government of the United States of America."
The company currently holds interests in 20 production leases and exploration licenses in Turkey's Thrace Basin, and produced approximately 119 cubic meters per day of natural gas on average during the second quarter of 2019, according to the statement.
(Anadolu Agency)
