Gas Exports Impose More European Friendliness Towards Algeria

More messages and steps of European friendliness towards Algeria appeared, in light of the global gas crisis, the approaching winter and cold in the old continent, and Brussels’ efforts to secure supplies that would protect its citizens from a severe cold and its institutions from a  hovering recession.

In this context, it is expected that the Minister of Energy and Mines, Mohamed Arkab, and the Commissioner for Energy of the European Union, Kadri Simson, will chair the fourth annual high-level meeting of the Energy Dialogue between Algeria and the European Union, which will be held on October 10 at the headquarters of the Ministry of Energy and Mines in Algiers.

According to a statement by the Ministry of Energy, of which Echorouk received a copy , Arkab and Simson will oversee the opening of the second business forum between Algeria and the European Union on energy, scheduled to be held on October 11 and 12, 2022.

The same statement explained that this meeting comes within the framework of the dialogue mechanisms established by the strategic partnership between Algeria and the European Union in the field of energy, and all topics of common interest, represented in the development of investments in the exploration and production of hydrocarbons, prospects for the development of the gas industry, the development of hydrogen and electricity, and cooperation in the field of renewable energies and energy efficiency in Algeria.

The ministry pointed out that it will make it possible to review the progress made in the field of energy cooperation and its prospects, since the launch of the strategic partnership stemming from the last meeting held in Algiers on November 20, 2018.

With regard to the second business forum, it aims, according to the same statement, to encourage investments and industrial partnerships between Algerian and European companies in the energy sector, and to engage in mutually beneficial partnerships in light of the current energy situation.

The statement concluded by noting that the forum will witness the participation of representatives of the embassies of the European Union accredited in Algeria, ministries and national institutions, as well as industrial associations and employers’ organizations.

It is clear from this step that the European Union has achieved that all the energy ways of the old continent lead to Algeria, especially in this particular circumstance characterized by a dire global energy crisis, especially natural gas, in light of a significant reduction in Russia’s supplies to the old continent and the transformation of this product into a rare commodity with prices skyrocketing.

This dialogue also comes at a time when the national hydrocarbon company Sonatrach announced, on the one hand, an increase in gas supplies to European countries, such as Italy, and on the other hand, it revised the prices of contracts with 6 out of its 11 trading partners in the field of gas.

By examining the statement of the Ministry of Energy, it seems clear that the Algerian party wants to act with a declared pragmatism, which is that this dialogue is indeed welcome, but in return, Europe must engage into industrial partnerships between Algerian and European companies in the energy sector, and enter into mutually beneficial partnerships in light of the current energy situation, as pointed out by the statement of the Ministry of Energy.