Old hands dominate Algeria’s upstream auction
The country’s latest licensing round attracted bids from IOCs and NOCs in a better showing than its last outreach to bidders
After more than ten years without open auctions, change is in the air in Algeria’s hydrocarbons sector. The six blocks awarded by upstream regulatory Alnaft on 17 June could potentially add 20bcm/yr on average to the country’s production. The 2024 oil and gas licensing round covered six onshore gas blocks in southwestern and eastern parts of the country, stretching over 152,000km². Successful bidders comprised seasoned Algerian players such as TotalEnergies, Eni and Sinopec, along with newcomers such as state-backed QatarEnergy. Given Algeria’s well-earned reputation for imposing tough fiscal terms on investors, Alnaft will be happy at securing a respectable showing of oil company interest,
Also in this section
9 March 2026
Petroleum Economist analysis sees increases in output from Saudi Arabia, Venezuela and Kazakhstan among others before region’s murky descent
9 March 2026
Energy sanctions are becoming an increasingly prominent tool of US foreign policy, with the country’s growth in oil and gas production allowing it to impose pressure on rivals without jeopardising its own energy security or that of its allies, argues Matthew McManus, a visiting fellow at the National Center for Energy Analytics
6 March 2026
The March 2026 issue of Petroleum Economist is out now!
6 March 2026
After Europe’s rapid buildout of floating LNG import capacity, Exmar CEO Carl-Antoine Saverys says future growth in floating gas infrastructure will increasingly be driven by developing markets as lower prices, rising energy demand and the need to replace coal unlock new opportunities for unconventional and tailor-made solutions
