Algeria’s Sonatrach takes the initiative

Algeria’s hydrocarbon production has been falling steadily since 2008 and export earnings dropped by 6% in the first half of 2013. New and imminent developments will stabilise production over the next five years but, with few other projects in the pipeline, the recovery could be short-lived. In the face of limited exploration by foreign investors and delays to the next licencing round, Sonatrach has now taken matters into its own hands and stepped up its upstream activity.