The Algerian head of state has appointed Rachid Hachichi as CEO of the hydrocarbon giant, replacing Toufik Hakkar.
The reasons for the decision were not specified. The CEO of the Algerian public gas and oil giant Sonatrach, Toufik Hakkar, has been fired, Algerian public television announced on October 2.
“The President of the Republic Abdelmadjid Tebboune has appointed Rachid Hachichi to the post of CEO of the Sonatrach group, replacing Toufik Hakkar,” the television said.
Toufik Hakkar succeeded Kamel-Eddine Chikhi in February 2020 and was dismissed after less than three months as the head of this group 100% owned by the State and crucial for the Algerian economy, which derives 60% of its budget. and 95% of its export earnings.
Chronic instability
Rachid Hachichi is the 13th manager of the public hydrocarbon company since 1999, a sign of chronic instability at the head of the group. He had already led the oil group from April to November 2019, replacing Abdelmoumen Ould Kaddour, sacked three weeks after the fall of former Algerian president Abdelaziz Bouteflika, pushed to resign by an unprecedented popular protest movement.
Sonatrach, a giant that brings together oil and gas exploration, production, refining, and transport activities, has been shaken in recent years by a series of financial and corruption scandals that have been the subject of investigations in Algeria and abroad. In November 2022, Ould Kaddour was sentenced to 15 years in prison for corruption in connection with the purchase of a refinery in Italy.
