Star Petronova has secured contracts to supply crude oil from the eastern fields to the Homs and Banias refineries, amid legal and economic questions surrounding the contracting mechanisms, which were conducted outside the framework of official tenders and the terms and conditions approved by the Ministry of Oil.
Breach of Transparency Standards in Contracting
Star Petronova's contracts bypassed the usual administrative channels within the Syrian Oil Transport Company, as it was granted the concession without official announcement or opening the bidding process to national companies.
The absence of competitive bids confirms the hypothesis of "direct contracting," which lacks the technical and financial standards necessary to protect the energy sector.
Manipulation of Transportation Prices and Profit Margins
Oil circles have observed sharp shifts in the pricing policy adopted by the company with private tanker owners:
- Initial Contract: The price was set between $40 and $50 per ton.
- Acquisition Phase: The company abruptly reduced the price to $36 per ton after securing control over transportation operations.
This decrease in drivers' wages, while the value of the contract with the state remains fixed, increases the company's profit margins—sums that could have been saved if public institutions had contracted directly with tanker owners.
Undermining the Role of Official Institutions
The introduction of a private "intermediary" between the oil fields and refineries constitutes an unjustified financial burden. The Syrian Oil Transport Company possesses the necessary personnel and expertise to manage these operations without the need for intermediary companies that siphon off huge percentages of the contract value. This serves as a model for stripping the public sector of its executive functions.
Precedents of Technical Rejection
Administrative sources at the Mahrukat Company confirmed that a previous offer from Star Petronova to invest in the oil sector was officially rejected due to its lack of economic viability and its violation of regulations for preserving public funds. However, the company's return through the "transportation contracts" gateway raises serious suspicions about the identity of the entities that provided it with legal and financial cover.
Files Leaving the Syrian Petroleum Company Unresolved
Attention is now focused on the Syrian Petroleum Company and the relevant ministry to clarify the following points:
- The legal basis for granting a company of unknown registration a strategic concession through a direct contracting system.
- Disclosing the actual value per ton in the original contract and comparing it to what is paid to drivers.
- The technical reasons that prevented public institutions from directly managing the transport fleet to eliminate brokerage costs.
Zaman Al Wasl
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