World Bank to allocate $146 million grant to Syria for power sector recovery

The World Bank has approved a $146 million grant to assist Syria in restoring reliable and affordable electricity and to support the country’s broader economic recovery.

According to the organisation's statement, cited by foreign media, the Syria Emergency Electricity Access and Recovery Project (SEEP) will focus on rehabilitating damaged transmission lines and transformer substations. It will also provide technical assistance aimed at strengthening the development of Syria’s electricity sector and improving the capacity of its institutions.

After 14 years of conflict, Syria’s power sector has been severely damaged, with ageing infrastructure, disrupted power plants, and chronic fuel shortages contributing to widespread outages.

“Among Syria’s urgent recovery needs, restoring the power sector has emerged as a top priority and a high-return investment,” said Jean-Christophe Carret, World Bank Country Director for the Middle East. “It can improve the living conditions of the Syrian people, support the return of refugees and internally displaced persons, enable the resumption of essential services like water and health, and help stimulate economic recovery.”

“This project represents the first step in the World Bank’s planned scale-up of support for Syria on its path to recovery and development,” Carret added.

According to the World Bank, the SEEP initiative will finance the repair of high-voltage transmission lines, including two critical 400-kilovolt interconnection lines that were damaged during the conflict. Restoring these lines will help reestablish Syria’s regional electricity links with Jordan and Türkiye.

The project will also involve the rehabilitation of high-voltage transformer substations located near demand centres in some of the hardest-hit regions, particularly areas with high numbers of returning refugees and internally displaced persons. In addition, it will supply essential spare parts and maintenance equipment needed to sustain the electricity network.