Third secret visit to Algeria in a row by Italy’s Eni Energy Company CEO

Italy’s Eni energy Company CEO Claudio Descalzi was in Algeria on April 19th and met with Prime Minister Abdelmalek Sellal, Energy minister Salah Khebri, and the CEO of national hydrocarbons group Sonatrach, Amine Mazouzi.

The Algeria visit, kept secret, was the third in a row by Mr Descalzi over the past few weeks.

A statement released by Eni said that its CEO outlined further opportunities for the relaunch of activities within the development of gas and oil in existing concessions in Algeria.

Eni energy firm said it has been present in Algeria since 1981 and now participates in 32 permits, with a daily production of 100,000 barrels of oil equivalent, making it the largest foreign producer in the country – so second only to Sonatrach.

Mr Descalzi also expressed his hopes for the development of future collaboration with the Algerian side in renewable energy.

Algeria is keen to expand in this sector but, even when oil prices were high, had not allocated much of its own investment to it. With oil prices low and revenues down, the government is now looking much more actively at ways to raise capital abroad for its oil, gas and renewable investments

 Eni has a strong presence in Algeria, producing on average 100,000 barrels of oil equivalent in the country.

“Eni’s CEO also expressed his hopes for the development of future collaborations in the renewable energies, in order to strengthen the partnership of over 10 years between the two countries and the two companies,” the company said in a statement.

Algeria has the 10th-largest natural gas deposits in the world and is the third-largest supplier to Europe. Its exports have been in decline, however, because of lagging foreign investments and the International Monetary Fund warned its economy may be at risk from lingering weakness in oil prices.

The government, however, has planned for oil shocks by reviewing spending and focusing more on non-hydrocarbon revenue streams. In November, Eni started laying the groundwork for the development of a renewable energy in the country alongside state-owned energy company Sonatrach.