Losing a commanding position on the European natural gas market is even more expensive. The Saudis want to build a pipeline through Syria and into Europe.
Plus, ice-free port on the Med.
I'm no Putinista, but it seemed to me that all the Russians were doing was wasting the murderous crazies that we wouldn't, and pissing off Erdogan- which I understand. They weren't messing with the Israelis or doing anything seriously sketchy that I'm aware of.
I think Putin satisfied with having propped up Assad to keep him in power for the forseeable future, and therefore no pipeline for the Saudis. He got what he paid for, and isn’t willing to pay more.
Neocons take note.
I've cited that myself more than once. But, I'm beginning to believe it's a minor factor. Consider what the Saudis and their allies are spending to try to knock out Assad. Now consider the cost of shipping the oil / gas by tanker. There is presently a lot of spare tanker capacity, too, and the cost of new supertankers has dropped to ~$91 million.* The Saudis could buy or have built their own, and operate them themselves (probably with a lot of Filipino, etc., crewmen.)
* http://gcaptain.com/morgan-stanley-supertankers-remain/
Pipelines are normally cheapest, of course, but not in this case! Either the Saudis are fools, or, there is MUCH more to it, even from their viewpoint.