Energy & Renewables

The steep fall of oil prices in 2014 underlined the extent to which the Algerian economy, already under pressure from growing domestic demand for energy and decreasing output, was dependent on hydrocarbons. Algeria is now facing the challenges of reforming and revitalising this strategic sector and, through state-owned energy company Sonatrach and its SH2030 Leading the Change strategy, is giving shape to long-term developments in offshore and shale. Renewables, meanwhile, are set to become an increasingly prominent component of the energy mix. While diversification will need to remain a top priority to avoid economic crises such as that of the 2015-17 period, energy will remain the most prominent sector for the country in the long run. This chapter contains interviews with Abdelmoumen Ould Kaddour, CEO, Sonatrach; Claudio Descalzi, CEO, Eni; Hesham Mekawi, Regional President, BP North Africa; and Fatma Zohra Zerouati, Minister of Environment and Renewable Energy.