Page 15 - DMEA Week 01 2021

DMEA NEWS IN BRIEF DMEA

COMPANIES gas to Spain and Portugal, according to month, the data showed.
Hakkar. Under the OPEC+ agreement, Iraq’s crude
Sonatrach to invest $40bn 70% in 2021 thanks to a 19% increase in its production ceiling was 4.24 mln bpd for
The group’s revenues have increased by
December.
over five years hydrocarbon exports, Hakkar said, adding at 102% last month, SOMO’s figures show.
This places Iraqi compliance under the deal
that Sonatrach has exported 34.5 billion
Algeria’s state-owned oil and gas group dollars in 2021 against 20 billion dollars in OPEC+, a grouping of the Organization of
Sonatrach has announced intentions to invest 2020. the Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies
$40 billion between 2022 and 2026 in oil He explained that the average price of led by Russia, uses an average of secondary
exploration, production and refining, and a barrel of oil was around 70 dollars, but source production figures to determine
gas exploration and extraction, CEO Toufik “Sonatrach’s strategy is based on a price of 50 compliance levels for each member country.
Hakkar said Monday. dollars, to avoid any market fluctuation”. REUTERS
“Our investment plan between 2022 and The fourth-largest economy in Africa,
2026 is about 40 billion dollars, including the country is particularly exposed to
8 billion dollars in 2022,” Hakkar said variations in hydrocarbon prices because REFINING
explaining that one-third of the investment of its dependence on oil and gas revenues,
will involve foreign partners. which account for more than 90% of external Crude oil refineries on
“The largest share will be devoted to income.
exploration and production, to preserve our The recent rebound of crude oil has helped cards in Zambia
production capacities, as well as to projects in to reduce the Algerian trade deficit, which
refining to meet the national demand for fuel,” contracted “from 10.504 billion dollars at the A local oil firm will establish 10 mini
he said. end of September 2020 to 1.571 billion dollars crude oil refineries at a cost of over $6mn
In this interview, the group’s boss also in September 2021”, the Bank of Algeria said to supplement Government efforts in the
announced Sonatrach’s steps “towards its at the end of December. supplying of fuel across the country.
return to Libya”, where it has suspended most In 2011, Sonatrach had announced a Midlands Zam Mal Petroleum Oils
of its activities since 2014. $60 billion investment plan for the period Limited, which has branches in Malawi and
According to Hakkar, a delegation of the 2011/2015 to strengthen its production England, supports activities of petroleum,
group will go there by the end of February to capacity. gas extraction and wholesale of petroleum
prepare with its partner the NOC, the Libyan AFRICA NEWS products.
national company, the “conditions of return in In May this year, the firm and another local
order to secure the workers and equipment”. company, Pivotech, signed a joint venture
- Important investments in Libya” - SUPPLY cooperation with Africa Star Holdings, a
Hakkar stressed that the Algerian group Zimbabwean company, to supply 20 million
had “made significant investments in oil and Iraqi output averaged litres of fuel from Russia on the Zambian
gas exploration” in Libya and for no reason market every week.
will the company “leave these discoveries 4.23mn bpd in December CEO Charles Mvula said setting up of mini
undeveloped”. crude oil refineries in all the ten provinces is
Sonatrach’s four-year plan includes a Iraq produced 4.23 million barrels per day feasible as the firm will finance the project
refinery in Hassi Messaoud (the largest oil (bpd) of oil in December, up by 17,000 bpd alongside some foreign investors. Mr Mvula
field in Algeria) and an extension of the from November, according to production data said about 1.8 million litres of crude oil will be
Skikda refinery (north-east) to convert certain from state-owned marketer SOMO seen by produced annually.
by-products into fuels. Reuters on Thursday. He said jobs for youths will be created in
Sonatrach also plans to put into service in The production figure includes output all the ten provincial centres. “We cannot
January the fourth turbocompressor of the from Iraq’s semi-autonomous Kurdistan be depending on foreign multi nationals to
Medgaz pipeline, which transports Algerian region, which produced 406,000 bpd last supply us with fuel in the country. We need

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