Spain: We received Algerian guarantees for the continuation of gas supplies

Algeria pumps 10 billion cubic meters of gas to Spain and Portugal through the Maghreb-Europe pipeline, which passes through Moroccan territory

Spanish Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Al-Paris said that he had received guarantees from the Algerian authorities that gas supplies to his country would continue, after abandoning a pipeline running through Moroccan territory.

The statement of Paris - who is visiting Algeria - came after his meeting yesterday, Thursday, with the country's President Abdelmadjid Tebboune and Foreign Minister Ramtane Lamamra.

In a video clip posted on his Facebook account, the Spanish minister described Algeria as a reliable partner in the energy field that has always fulfilled its commitments to Spain, according to the Anatolia Agency.

"I received guarantees today regarding the continuity of (gas) supplies," he added.

Paris' statements come weeks after Algeria announced that it would stop supplying Spain with gas through a pipeline that passes through Moroccan territory at the end of the current contract on October 31, and content itself with a direct marine pipeline between the two countries.

Algeria pumps 10 billion cubic meters of gas to Spain and Portugal through the Maghreb-Europe pipeline, which passes through Moroccan territory. Spain with the approach of winter.

Paris did not specify whether the supply of Algerian gas would continue through the pipeline passing through Morocco, or by other means, according to Agence France-Presse.

Options

Last May, the Algerian oil company Sonatrach announced that it would raise the capacities of the "Med Gas" pipeline to more than 10 billion cubic meters annually, with investments amounting to about $280 million.

Experts say that Algeria may resort to shipping liquefied gas to Spain by ship, to compensate for any shortage that may result from stopping the use of the pipeline passing through Moroccan territory.

But the option of shipping liquefied natural gas by sea - some assert - will not be economically viable.

Earlier, the Algerian Ministry of Energy confirmed, in a statement, that the country has sufficient capabilities to meet the increasing demand for gas in European markets, especially Spanish, thanks to its flexibility and the ability to liquefy gas.

These developments come after Algeria announced it was severing diplomatic relations with Morocco on August 24.