Algeria announces that it will maintain gas prices for all its customers except Spain

Algeria has decided to maintain gas prices for all its customers except Spain after the Government's lurch in the Sahara issue.

The president of the Algerian energy giant Sonatrach,

, has declared to the official agency of his country that the only client to whom he does not confirm price maintenance in the current international crisis is Spain.

"Since the beginning of the crisis in Ukraine, gas and oil prices have skyrocketed. Algeria has decided to maintain relatively correct contract prices for all its customers. However, it is not ruled out to proceed with a 'recalculation' of prices with our Spanish client," said Tewfik Hakkar in an interview with the official APS agency.

This newspaper already published on March 21 that Algeria intends to raise prices to Spain, but it is significant that it is the only one of Sonatrach's clients for which it does not confirm rates.

The diplomatic crisis with the main Spanish gas supplier coincides with the contractual right of the Algerian company at this time to review the prices in the Spanish contract for the period 2022-2024.

This is established in its contract with Naturgy, the main Spanish gas company.

Sonatrach already had the incentive to revise upwards due to the rise in prices in the international market, but the singling out of Spain exclusively points to political reasons.

by Hakkar in his statements to the official agency.

The Algerian government maintains that it is a reliable supplier and that it fulfills its supply commitments, but that does not prevent it from raising prices.

The Algerian president,

ordered last November the closure of the gas pipeline with Spain that crosses Morocco, but assured the foreign minister,

, that this would not alter the supply to the peninsula.

The political climate worsened, however, last month after the support of

to the absorption of Western Sahara by Morocco.

That decision unleashed the withdrawal of the Algerian ambassador in Madrid and unprecedented tension with Algeria in the midst of an energy crisis.

Spain buys 40% of its gas from Algeria through, above all, the Medgaz gas pipeline, which is the only one that the North African country has open with Spain and which links directly with Almería.

The top executive of Sonatrach shows muscle and also emphasizes that he can increase the supply to clients and that he will be able to do so much more in the future.

He assures that he has available "

", although he admits that they are not enough to "replace Russian gas" in Europe.

But he adds that "at the rate of our explorations, our capacities will double in four years, which points to promising prospects with our European clients."

Conforms to The Trust Project criteria

Know more

• Algeria

• Morocco

• Europe

• Almeria

• Occidental Sahara

• naturgy

• Petroleum

• Ukraine

Historic turn on the SaharaThe Government trusts that the largest purchase of gas due to the Russian invasion will calm Algeria before the turn in the Sahara

INTERVIEWJosé María Marín: "France demanded to have exclusive control of the new gas pipeline and that all of Spain pay for it"

Diplomacy The US Secretary of State will visit Morocco and Algeria in the midst of the conflict over the Spanish turn to the Sahara

See links of interest

• Last News

• Oscar Winners 2022

• When does the 2021 Income start?

• Income 2021

• when is holy thursday

• Easter 2022

• Work calendar 2022

• Economy Podcast

• Panathinaikos - Real Madrid

• Olympiacos Piraeus - Barca

• Bitci Baskonia - Zalgiris Kaunas

• 1. FC Union Berlin - 1. FC Cologne

• Girona - Malaga