U.S. energy major Chevron has entered an early-stage agreement to assess oil and gas exploration opportunities in Syrian offshore waters, according to a company spokesperson cited by Reuters on Wednesday.

The memorandum of understanding was signed with Syria’s state-owned Syrian Petroleum Company and UCC Holding, a Qatari firm. The deal allows the parties to evaluate the prospects for offshore energy development but does not yet commit Chevron to drilling or production.

Syria’s Mediterranean coastline sits between some of the region’s most significant natural gas discoveries, including fields offshore Israel and Egypt. Chevron already has a strong presence in the eastern Mediterranean, where it operates Israel’s Leviathan gas field, one of the country’s largest energy projects.

Previous attempts to explore Syria’s offshore resources have faced setbacks. In 2013, Russia’s Soyuzneftegaz secured exploration rights in Syrian waters, but the effort was abandoned two years later as the country’s civil war intensified.
At present, most of Syria’s oil output comes from land-based fields in the northeast of the country, including the Al-Omar field.

UCC Holding is a subsidiary of Doha-based Power International Holding, according to information published on the company’s website.
Chevron shares trade under the ticker symbol CVX on U.S. markets.