Maghreb Edition

In-Depth: Algeria’s gas sector facing internal woes and aggressive competition from QatarF

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Posted On 23 May 2022

Number of times this article was read : 732

By Arezki Daoud: Algeria could have benefited from Russia’s war on Ukraine to maximize its revenue potential from exporting gas to a tense European market. But troubled by an unprecedented political crisis and a rocky presidential transition at home, Algeria’s leaders have failed to anticipate global geopolitical events that are reshaping the energy sector and have neglected to inject investments in the country’s gas industry necessary to boost production. While for at least next few years, Algeria cannot be counted on as a major contributor to offset the drop of Russian gas supply to Europe, the longer term prospect is also not fully assured as Qatar has launched an aggressive campaign to secure export deals with Europe, challenging Algeria on its turf.

Companies cited in this analysis: Sonatrach, Neptune Energy, Tecnicas Reunidas, Total Energies, Cepsa, Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) and Spanish public financing agency Cofides

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The North Africa Journal is a leading English-language publication focused on North Africa. The Journal covers primarily the Maghreb region and expands its general coverage to the Sahel, Egypt, and beyond, when events in those regions affect the broader North Africa geography. The Journal does not have any affiliation with any institution and has been independent since its founding in 1996. Our position is to always bring our best analysis of events affecting the region, and remain as neutral as humanly possible. Our coverage is not limited to one single topic, but ranges from economic and political affairs, to security, defense, social and environmental issues. We rely on our full staff analysts and editors to bring you best-in-class analysis. We also work with sister company MEA Risk LLC, to leverage the presence on the ground of a solid network of contributors and experts. Information on MEA Risk can be found at www.MEA-Risk.com.