It seems that divine grace is limitless in Algeria, touch wood. The country has already positioned itself as a leading gas exporter and one of the leading suppliers to European Union (EU) countries, despite the squabbles over the Association Agreement. Algiers is moving towards consolidating its status as a privileged partner of Europeans by significantly increasing the flow of investments in the hydrocarbons sector. Mohamed Arkab, the Minister of Energy and Mines, announced that Algeria’s customers – France, Italy, and Spain in particular – have certainly welcomed with joy…
Akrab said that the launch of the 2024 cycle of oil and gas licensing will take place very soon. He made these remarks on the sidelines of the 12th edition of the Africa-Mediterranean Exhibition and Conference on Energy and Hydrogen, which ends this Wednesday, October 16. The minister did not provide details on the timetable for this major event, he simply said that the details will be provided ” soon ” by the National Agency for the Development of Hydrocarbon Resources (ALNAFT).
What we know, through the mouth of Mourad Beldjeham, the head of the ALNAFT Steering Committee is that Algeria plans to open a new chapter in offshore oil and gas exploration for 2025 or 2026. He made these confidences yesterday Tuesday. According to him, no less than 17 oil and gas prospecting projects ” have been prepared ” with this in mind. Very heavy stuff, then.
Let us recall that in December 2023 Sonatrach, the Algerian public hydrocarbons company, had unveiled an investment program of around 50 billion dollars, between 2024 and 2028. The French Total, the Italian Eni, and the American Occidental are in pole position in this dynamic. Obviously oil and gas are not clinically dead, quite the contrary there is a resurgence of activity that ignores climatic and environmental imperatives.
